


The Wall Between Us

by LuzArt99



Series: Miraculous tales [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Drama & Romance, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Mind Manipulation, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-26
Updated: 2020-03-26
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:01:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 86,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22903618
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LuzArt99/pseuds/LuzArt99
Summary: Why is Adrien feeling this way, Marinette has always been his friend, why are these feelings overwhelming him now?Based on the song "Ce Mur Qui Nos Separe" a.k.a "The Wall Between Us"
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe
Series: Miraculous tales [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1646287
Comments: 2
Kudos: 42





	1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

" _ **Elle est debout juste derrière moi**_

_**Elle me sourit, détourne les yeux** _

_**Je crois comprendre son drôle de jeu"** _

"What do you mean you lost a miraculous?!" Marinette asked as Master Fu was going through his stuff for the third time in a row.

"It appears so, Marinette. It must have fallen when I relocated after Feast's attack," Master Fu was in great distress, and it showed.

"But that was months ago, Master! There's no way we're going to find it now! How come you didn't notice before?!"

"It's not like I go through them every day, Marinette. I was just going to take a look at them before my trip to the temple of the guardians, but now... There's no way I can go there having lost yet another Miraculous!" Master Fu sat on a small couch covering his face with his hands. Marinette felt bad for him, he had been through a lot these past few months, and now, when he thought everything was falling into place, this happens.

"Chat Noir and I will be on the lookout, but you have to tell me how it looks like so we recognize it if we see it. I don't suppose you have a picture of it?" Marinette said trying to comfort him, she knew it wasn't his fault, and she couldn't be mad at him.

Master Fu sighed, "It's the fish miraculous, it looks like a white anklet with five pearls attached to it, but when it's charged it turns completely silver. Mishell, is a silver Kwami with a green fin on her head."

"Don't worry Master, we'll find it!" After giving him an assuring smile, Marinette left the cinema were Master Fu was now working. "I guess we'll have to meet Chat tonight to tell him the news, Tikki..." She moaned, "This is terrible! I can't imagine how Master Fu is feeling!"

"The fish miraculous is a very powerful one, Marinette, it can be terrible in the wrong hands," Tikki answered from Marinette's purse

"What kind of powers does it give you?" Marinette asked, she was very curious but didn't ask Master Fu about it since he seemed deeply troubled.

"It's also known as the miraculous of the mind. It gives its owner the ability to read and control minds!" Tikki said half excited half terrified.

"I guess you're right, a thing like that can be really dangerous,"

"Or very useful if you think about it, it all depends on who uses it." Tikki corrected. "But now you got to run, Marinette, you don't want to be late for your first day at the _lycée_!" Marinette gasped looked at the time and started running.

"You're right... I'm so sad this new school is not as close to my house as the old one used to be." Tikki giggled, hiding in Marinette's purse as she ran. After about ten minutes running, Marinette reached her destination. "Alya!" She yelled as she saw her best friend talking to Nino and... Adrien. Alya turned around as Marinette reached her at the top of the stairs.

"Hey girl!" Alya said to Marinette as she was trying to catch up her breath. "I was just telling the guys that you and I have the same classes together, turns out they have some classes with us as well!" Alya added with a wink. Marinette only managed to smile a little.

"You're ten minutes early, Marinette. Why were you running?" Adrien asked, looking at the clock on his phone, genuinely concerned about Marinette's state. Marinette looked confused, according to her phone she was 5 minutes late!

"I might or might not have fiddled with her phone's clock so that she would stop being late everywhere," Alya giggled while hugging her with one arm. Marinette looked at Alya in disbelief, but she ignored it and winked at her, "You're welcome, now let's get to class before we're all late for real."

o0o

Once in their classroom, they sat together noticing that almost all of their old classmates were there. All of the faces were familiar, except for one. The girl with a pearl anklet on her left foot, but of course, Marinette didn't notice this because she was too busy looking at how handsome Adrien had gotten during the summer.

From the back of the classroom, the girl with the pearl anklet thought, "I found them!" The Kwami in her pocket acknowledged this thought by tapping her twice. From where she was seating, she was able to see the names and alter-egos of almost everyone in this class, man, this people had crazy lifestyles! There was Volpina, Rena Rouge, Carapace, Monkey King, and many others! But she... or should Isay, _I_ was only interested in two, Marinette Dupang-Cheng/Ladybug and Adrien Agreste/Chat Noir.

"Good morning class!" The teacher, a rather nice-looking young man with dark hair and black glasses said as he entered the class. He seemed young to be a teacher, which was good, since older teachers are usually stricter. This teacher was rather nervous about his first day as a teacher, he didn't seem to have a lot planned for today... God, I love the powers my Kwami gave me, thanks to them I knew his name was Gérald LeBeau before he said it.

"How was your summer vacation?" _Monsieur LeBeau_ asked to no one in particular, but then he proceeded to ask each student to present themselves to the class. Just as I had predicted, most of the students came from the same _collège_ so they already knew each other very well, there were even some couples among them. I seemed to be the only outsider. I knew it was going to be like that, I just didn't think it was going to be this bad...

Since this was the French literature class, the professor made us write some essays on how we had spent the summer. After that, he said we could leave early, which was exactly what I was hoping for. I finished way before everyone else.

"Finished already _Mademoiselle Thomas_?" _Monsieur LeBeau_ asked as I handed in my paper. I shrugged.

"Not my most exciting summer ever." Well, at least the part I could talk about wasn't all that exciting. "Can I go now?"

"It is very early still, but since you finished already, I don't see why not." He motioned to the door but I was already walking away.

"It wasn't all that bad, was it shelly?" I thought, "I finished my homework early, and found who I was looking for, I would say my mission is going pretty well." I entered the girls' bathroom and found that all the stalls were empty. That's the good part about being the first one to leave the classroom.

"Don't get ahead of yourself," Mishell flashed out of my dress' pocket for the first time in the day. "Your mission has only begun, and we still have a lot of work to do,"

"Then let's get going! Mishell," I tiptoed on my left foot to show my miraculous, "Let's dive!" The familiar magic shone around me, tying my curly brown hair into a braid, and transforming my blue sundress into a spandex suit.

With a full transformation, I jumped out from the window up to the roof, I walked a little and managed to get back into the building from an open window in a corridor, I walked with my back on the wall to my new classroom being careful not to be seen or filmed by a camera (although I'm pretty sure this school had seen weirder things lurking through its corridors.) When I reached the door, I jumped to hide in the shadow of a corner in the ceiling. Then, it was just a matter of waiting a few moments until the bell rang and everybody started to leave the classroom, one of the first ones to leave was Adrien who was talking to Nino.

When I accessed his mind, I could see that he was thinking about being Chat Noir, he was eager to leave school and parkour around the city. He seemed to love it. Talking about love, I could also see a lot of love declarations and letters in the back of his mind, one-sided love, of course, but there was one big "file" about his love for Ladybug. It was such a sweet love! He was so devoted to her that even though he had many female friends the thought of ever being something more with either one of them had never even crossed his mind.

"Focus on what's important!" I told myself and I kept searching in Adrien's mind, there was some information on Master Fu, but it was rather outdated, I knew for a fact that Master Fu was no longer in his massage shop. Adrien knew this as well, but he was yet to know where he had transferred to. However, he did know that Ladybug knew. So, she was going to be my next target.

I found her talking to Alya, and as soon as I accessed her mind, I saw a million of thoughts about... Adrien? Well, what are the odds! But these were different to Adrien's thoughts about Ladybug, it seemed like Marinette had already planned her whole future with Adrien, a bit too obsessive for my liking, but that's none of my business... wait, is that an Adrien's themed wallpaper in her bedroom? And don't tell me that's Adrien's schedule... Boy, this girl has issues...

"Focus!" I urged myself to find what I was looking for. I entered to a more organized side of her brain! I saw that she had been with Master Fu a few hours ago! and he was looking for me! Well, for my miraculous! I memorized the place and waited until everyone left the corridor. When there was nobody else in sight, I came out of my hiding spot rushing out through a window and detransformed hidden among some bushes.

"I can't believe this, Shelly! They're in love with each other! Just they don't know it! What is it, some sort of love square?" I was almost laughing as I came out of the bushes into the sunlight.

"Remember the M.R.C!" Although shelly seemed mad, she knew I wouldn't do anything with that information. "Love square, circle, pentagon, it doesn't matter, it's none of our business, what we need to do now is get to Master Fu."

"I'm still not sure it's a good idea to leave school before classes are over, what if my parents find out?"

"Right now, it's more important to go to Master Fu, you saw it yourself! If Ladybug and Chat Noir find you before you talk to him, they're going to think you're evil, and we could get into serious trouble! We'll deal with your parents later."

"But Shelly... I don't want to enchant my parents, isn't it against the M.R.C?"

"I'm not talking about enchanting them! I meant to make up an excuse or something! We're _not_ enchanting your parents or teachers!" She exclaimed exasperatedly.

"Hehe, sel _fish_ " I laughed at my own pun but. Shelly looked at me irritated. Apparently, she didn't appreciate my joke "Fine, let's go to Master Fu."

o0o

After a while, I found the cinema I was looking for. There was nobody in sight, except a small old man going through some boxes.

"Master!" I called him. He was startled when he heard me address him that way and turned around abruptly. "There's no need to work yourself up looking for it, I have it with me." He seemed confused at first, but then he looked to my ankle, "Hey! My eyes are up here!" I joked.

"I apologize," he said turning a bit red, "but who are you?"

"oh right, well... My name is Alba Thomas, I just move into the city from Canada, but a few months ago I came here to kind of check out the city and stuff, and one day when I was walking around, I found this anklet on the floor, I asked everyone that was there, and I swear I asked everyone, if it was theirs but none of them recognized it. So, I tucked it in my pocket, it wasn't until I was already on the plane back to Canada when Shelly appeared and explained everything to me. She told me that I had to find you but I told her to wait a few months until me and my family were ready to move back to France. Since then, we've been training really hard, and I'm already able to see names and current trains of thoughts without transforming, but anyways, When we came back to Paris, Shelly told me that you would probably be on that old massage shop of yours but you weren't so I decided to just go to school since Shelly kind of knew that Ladybug and Chat Noir would be there, so I kind of searched into their memories and came up with this location, and please don't take away my miraculous." I blurted out. I didn't want to lose Shelly; she became my best friend in the few months we've shared together.

"You met with Ladybug and Chat Noir you said," he seemed deep in thought.

"Sort of, they're my classmates, it was just a matter of transforming without getting seen and going through her recent memories"

"Can you tell me what their names are?" He said nonchalantly, taunting me, as if Shelly hadn't taught me better.

"You should know them, you basically created them, I'm sorry but I can't tell you what their names are."

"What about Marinette's crush on Adrien?"

"Marinette's what?" I didn't dare give him any information, Mishell _had_ taught me not to reveal anything I saw on people's minds. But there was something odd, I couldn't tell clearly what Master Fu was thinking.

"The love square,"

"If you're asking for it then you already know, you don't need me giving you more information," I said firmly. Master Fu seemed more relaxed now than he was when I had first entered.

"You taught her well, Mishell." He said as if he meant me, but of course, he wasn't talking to me. At that moment Mishell came out of my pocket before I could do anything about it.

"Of course I did Master, I trust her," she said happily.

"It seems so, given that you told her things that should be better left unsaid," He didn't seem mad, he was just deep in thought.

"Master, I've seen her heart a thousand times; she is not selfish and has followed the rules I've given her to a T."

"It's still too dangerous, one more miraculous going around, what if Hawk Moth finds out?" This _was_ odd, for the first time in months I didn't know what was happening, I couldn't read his train of thoughts.

"I'm sorry but what exactly are we discussing? And how come I can't understand anything you're saying?" I interrupted.

"Child, avoiding the effects of the fish miraculous is the first thing you teach a guardian, is basic knowledge for us." He grinned. "But it's too dangerous to let you keep your miraculous. It is very powerful and if Hawk Moth, the villain that has been terrorizing Paris finds it... You'll be in danger."

"Oh, well, he doesn't need to know I have it or that I exist, for that matter."

"Then what's the point of keeping a miraculous if not for fighting a villain?"

"I can help from the shadows, without anybody knowing I'm there, not even Ladybug or Chat Noir have to know."

"Oh, but they must know, they're charged with defeating Hawk Moth and I'm assuming you are not much of a fighter yourself." I had to admit that was true, no matter how hard I tried I was never able to fight with my weapon, I mean, I could maneuver the trident, I just couldn't strike with it.

"I could go out at night. I just need to see a person and I'll know what they're up to, I could discover who Hawk Moth is easily."

"Then if you are going to do that you cannot be on your own... meet with Ladybug and Chat Noir in the _Eiffel_ tower tonight at 6pm."

"So... you're letting me keep it?" I asked fearfully.

"I will, under the condition that you won't fight Akumas along with Ladybug or Chat Noir, Hawk Moth could think that I gave you the miraculous and track me down again."

"I promise Master," I bowed, I don't know why it just seemed like the right thing to do, but to be honest, I was so excited that I could have hugged him.

"If Mishell believes in you, so can everyone else, it is very difficult to conquer her trust."

"Thank you so, so much!" I took him by surprise and this time I did hug him.

"There, there now, I have one other condition," He said with a grave expression which then shifted into a smile. "Come by often, we have a lot to discuss."

o0o

Classes that first day of school had been long for Marinette, she was used to waking up late, and now she had to wake up at 6am to get ready for school! She was devastated, no Akuma had worn her out the way this day had. So as soon as she got home, she laid on her bed and closed her eyes for "five minutes"

o0o

"I thought she'd be here by now," Chat said to himself. He had been waiting at the Eiffel tower for hours now. Ladybug had stood him up several times before, but this time she sounded serious on the message she sent him, she seemed genuinely troubled by something. He was looking forward to seeing her tonight and maybe even tell her how his day had been, though he knew she probably wouldn't let him, she was all about work and safety. Chat was more... carefree.

"Screw it." He was done waiting, if it was ten minutes, he would wait, half an hour, gladly, an hour, still, but three hours?! They had planned to meet at 6, but it was already a quarter past 9. "I don't know what kept her, but I don't think she's going to come now." He wasn't mad, he knew Ladybug already, sometimes she just doesn't make it to their appointments, but Adrien was supposed to be at home now. Luckily, he left some music playing on the piano and some pillows on his bed in case somebody entered, which he highly doubted since he didn't have any events planned for that evening. But, since he had gone through so much trouble to get out of his house, he might as well enjoy his time out. Ladybug or no Ladybug he was going to do the thing he loved the most. Parkour! Or some variation of it, with a baton...

He jumped from the Eiffel tower onto the nearest roof and started running. How he loved this feeling, it almost felt like he was flying, he was free, no schedules, no practices, no photoshoots! He could be himself now, there was nobody to tell him what to do, he was contempt like this. Ladybug could take her time, he'd wait for her a thousand years without complaining, but that didn't mean he couldn't do other things to kill time.

He stopped on a rooftop from where he saw a familiar face. Marinette! Who seemed to have just woken up because she was stretching and didn't seem aware of her surroundings

"Evening Mari," He said as he approached her. She was startled and suddenly realized that she should have been somewhere else, "Just woke up?"

"I slept the whole evening," she said sheepishly, turning as red as a beetroot. "It was just supposed to be a power nap!"

"No worries Mari, your secret's safe with me," he laughed, "I hope you managed to get enough rest."

"I did... but I was supposed to meet with a friend tonight, ugh. I'm such a klutz"

"Worry not princess, I'm sure they'll understand," Chat sat on the railing of Marinette's balcony taking a look at their surroundings. Marinette seemed a bit more at ease now

"What are you doing here, though? Aren't you supposed to be chasing mice or something?" she grinned.

"As tempting as that sounds," he joked, "your friend wasn't the only one who got stood up tonight, it seems another Lady likes to take long power naps as well." Marinette giggled uncomfortably knowing that it wasn't another Lady it was just her sluggish self. "Doesn't matter, it's not like it's the first time that it happens, I know M'lady is a busy girl."

"Still, she probably should have called or something,"

"I know M'lady like I know my own mind, she's going to be late sometimes, and what can I say? Gotta love her." He shrugged. "Maybe what she had to say wasn't that important, she never misses something important," Marinette was mortified now, how could she have stood him up? What she had to say WAS important! "Are you alright Mari, you seem stressed out," he put his hand on his chin as if thinking of something.

"I guess the 5 hours power nap only made me feel more anxious," She shied away.

"Well we have to do something about it, how about I take you on a run around the city?"

"What? Now?" She exclaimed.

"Sure! it's not like it's the first time you and I go on a stroll, come on it'll be fun!" Chat extended his hand and Marinette took it hesitantly, "This time it'll be different, this time I'll give you a piggyback. Hold on tight and keep your eyes opened, I don't want you to miss out." Marinette obeyed and held onto Chat's neck. "Ready?" Marinette nodded and off they were, jumping around the houses of Paris.

Marinette had never felt something like that, not even when she was Ladybug, it felt as if she was flying. She hadn't noticed that Chat was way faster than her. But there was also something else that was different. Usually, when she was jumping around the houses of Paris of Paris, she only did it with a sense of duty, only caring about her destination, but now... she didn't even know where they were going, so she had time to appreciate the landscape before her. When had Paris become so beautiful? She could see the houses but also some of the monuments and landmarks. She didn't know how to describe it, but she felt like a tourist, awestruck by the beauty of the city as if for the first time.

After what felt like a few minutes Chat stopped on a rooftop by the _Champ de Mars_ , from there they could see the Eiffel Tower, the _Seine_ , everything.

"What do you think?" He asked without letting go of her.

"The view or the ride?"

"Both."

"I've never seen Paris this way, never had time to enjoy the view... And the ride... it made me feel..."

"Free." He finished for her, and she nodded. "This is why I love parkouring. Do you know that feeling of having done your homework, done your chores and having n other responsibilities left and then being able to do whatever you want?" He asked putting her down.

"Not really, I never have that much time in my hands." She shrugged amusedly.

"Well, this is what it feels like. Nobody is stopping you from doing what you want, no masks, no responsibilities, no nothing to hold you down."

"It's funny how you say that with a mask on." Marinette sat on the roof taking on the view one more time.

"You'd be surprised princess, but it's when I wear the mask that I feel more like myself..." He said taking a seat beside her. She smiled but turned her gaze quickly.

"Must be fun, to live a life like that." She said letting out a sigh. "I don't get much free time, that's why whenever I do have it, I try to catch some hours of sleep." Chat giggled.

"Don't think I'm this lucky all the time, I just try to finish everything early just to try and leave my house, which feels more like a cage than a home, sometimes."

Suddenly Marinette felt like laying her head on Chat's shoulder but just as she was about to do so, Chat stood up abruptly. He was staring at something but Marinette couldn't tell what.

" _Chaton_?" She said cautiously.

"I saw something, a person lurking in the shadows." Chat said reaching for his baton.

"Do you think it might be an Akuma?"

"Maybe, but I have to follow it anyhow, I'm going to have to leave you here, we're not far from your house, do you think you can make it on your own?"

"I'll be fine, you go after it." Chat nodded and expanded his baton to help Marinette get down on the floor and as soon as she reached the bottom he started running away.

"I don't think it was an Akuma, Marinette..." Tikki said, coming out of Marinette's purse.

"Whatever it was, he's gonna need help."

Meanwhile, the person that Chat was chasing seemed like a woman, oddly enough she had a trident in her hand that she used for impulse, similar to Chat's baton, just this one didn't expand. She was wearing spandex, similar to his, but hers was silver and sparkly but didn't cover her shoulders or fingers. Her hair was tied back in a French braid that came down to her waist.

He ran after her, and since he was faster, he caught up with her quickly, but as he was about to take hold of her, the rooftops came to an end and she gave one last big leap, diving right into the Seine river. Chat hated water. He wasn't about to follow her inside.

"Great!" He mumbled to himself.

"Chat Noir!" Came a voice from behind him.

"Well, well, look who decided to show up." Chat said jokingly while turning around to greet her. "A bit late aren't we, M'Lady?" He winked at her this time. He wasn't mad at her, but he was also not going to let it go that easily.

"I'm sorry _Chaton_ I had... something to..." Ladybug tried to explain.

"No time for that M'Lady, right now we have to find out who she was."

"She?"

"It looked like a she to me. It could be an Akuma, but if it was, why did it run away from me? Usually Akumas want to get as close as possible."

"Maybe a sentimonster?"

"Neither an Akuma nor a sentimonster." A third voice came from the darkness.

"You," Chat reached for his baton, "But how? I saw you jump into the river," Chat asked but Ladybug still couldn't see her.

"I came out and leaped up here while you were not looking, of course," she said matter-of-factly.

"Come out to the light." Ladybug demanded.

"I get it Ladybug, not all of us have night vision." The girl came out of the darkness as ladybug prepared to catch her with her Yo-yo. "There's no need for that Ladybug, dear, I'm on your side!" I said before Ladybug could react.

"How do we know that?" Chat asked.

"Well, let me introduce myself. My name is Sirena, and I'm the holder of the fish Miraculous"

"Yeah right, as if we would fall for that..." Chat was still pointing his baton menacingly at me, but Ladybug interrupted him.

"It is possible Chat." she whispered so that only Chat could hear.

"That's right," I interrupted her, "Actually Chaton, that's what she was coming to tell you this afternoon, before she had to attend to... other business." I said looking suggestively at Ladybug. "She was coming to tell you that Master Fu told her that the fish miraculous was lost and that you should keep an eye for anybody wearing an anklet that looked like this," I motioned to my ankle where my miraculous was placed.

"How did you know?" Ladybug asked.

"The fish miraculous is the miraculous of the mind, that means that just like Chat has his night vision and you have your healing power, I can read your mind." They seemed rather shocked, but I was just starting, I wanted to take a little revenge on Ladybug for making me wait so long. "You're naked upon my gaze, I know all that you've been up to," I said walking near ladybug, "All that you've been thinking," I walked to Chat, "And all that you are." I finished, standing proudly before them.

"How do we know that you're not just an Akuma though?" Ladybug demanded, "You wouldn't be the first, how do we know that you are who you say you are?"

"Are you sure that's what you want to ask Ma-" Marinette froze thinking that I was about to reveal her identity "-Lady?" I finished. She was relieved but understood the message, I knew who she was. "And you A-" Now Adrien froze, he was easier to convince but he was second-guessing himself "-ngel?" I started. He understood the message as well. "You know that I'm telling the truth, but you're worried because you remember what happened with Volpina."

"If you are who you say you are," He straightened himself, finally letting go of the defensive pose, "Then why did you run from me?"

"Well, allow me to tell you my side of today's events." I sat on the floor with my legs crossed, "Get comfy, this is going to take a while." they reluctantly obeyed and sat in front of me.

"To make the story short, I found my miraculous when I was strolling around Paris, but I didn't know it was a miraculous. That day I left the country and when I was too far to come back my miraculous activated and then I met Mishell, my kwami. This was ages ago, but I knew I had to come and talk to Master Fu about it or he would think that I had stolen the miraculous. Anyways, by means I will not share I found Master Fu just today. Master Fu told me that I could keep my miraculous under two conditions. That I help you guys find out who Hawk Moth is and that he never finds out about my existence, so yeah, that means that I can't fight Akumas with you, but with my powers, if you help me, we can find a way to find Hawk Moth and Mayura and defeat them once and for all. Which brings me to how I ended up here.

"Master Fu told me that I should come so that we could make a plan to discover Hawk Moth's identity. He told me that you would meet at the Eiffel Tower at 6 pm sharp, so at 5:58 I was here waiting for both of you to arrive and then make my grand. But... I mean, Chat did arrive at 6 on the dot, but Ladybug... I mean, get a grip girl, making us wait 3 hours? No calls, no nothing? I mean, I know what you were doing and all but still" Ladybug turned red, hehe, well, redder so I added, "by the way, don't worry, I won't tell the kitty, let it be our little secret.

"Anyways, Chat got tired of waiting and left. And I mean, _Chaton_ you deserve a statue for your patience, I mean, 3 hours! I would have left after half an hour." I added and Chat looked smug, much to Ladybug's despair, "Ok so, back to the story, Chat Noir left and I just had to follow him, but I couldn't reveal myself to him alone, because then I would have to tell my story an extra time and honestly I don't want to.

"So, I followed Chat until he randomly met with Marinette. I kept following them until Chat Noir saw me-" Actually I left myself be seen because I knew that Marinette would transform and follow me, but I left that part out for the sake of Ladybug's identity "-and I started running again, because I didn't want to give double explanations and I jumped into the water because I'm faster and more agile underwater than on dry land. But when I saw from the distance that Ladybug had arrived I realized that finally, my time had come to reveal myself to you, and you better stop thinking I still could be an Akuma, because for real, no Akuma would give you this many explanations." I could see that Ladybug still didn't like me, but I could see that Chat was still second-guessing himself "Chat, you believe me." Chat Shrugged.

"I don't know, this isn't the first time something like this has happened, you know? and I've been wrong." He was ashamed of himself for having been fooled several times, but this time was different and I would make him see.

"Ladybug once told you to use your brain in a situation like this, didn't she?" He nodded recalling the battle with the Ladybug sentimonster, "Well, I'm going to tell you something different, use your brain, but also your heart, rarely those two agree on something, but when they do, they're hardly ever wrong." Ladybug agreed silently. "As for you, Ladybug," I said, looking straight at her with a serious face. "First, I think you should get an alarm clock. And second, if you don't want to believe me you can go and ask Master Fu to confirm my story, but I just ask you to give me a vow of confidence. I can assure you; I'll never make you regret it." I knew this was the time to stop acting all high and mighty if I wanted to gain their trust.

"I'll talk to Master Fu, but until then, I just want you to know that I don't trust you." She stated the obvious, at least it was for me.

"Alright, then I'll see you tomorrow, at the Eiffel tower, please try to be there on time, will ya?" I winked at her and jumped into the river before they could say anything else.

"I'm still not sure if letting her go was the best idea..." Ladybug said to Chat Noir, still staring at the rapidly flowing water.

"What else could we have done? Tied her up until we could find Master Fu? Take her miraculous? I don't know about you M'Lady, but I actually trust her," Chat replied with a smirk.

"You're too trusting Chat Noir, that's your problem." She snapped.

"Well, your problem is that you never trust anyone." He snapped back. "Besides, what's the worst that could happen? Her, telling everybody our identities? What's the big deal about that?"

"It _is_ a big deal Chat Noir! It would put us all in danger! Hawk Moth could find out and..."

"Not if we find him first!" He answered quickly, "I've had enough of him! All we do is fight the Akumas that he creates, which I remind you are just baits for him try to get our miraculouses. After a whole year of the same we have done nothing to stop him, this might be our chance to finally defeat Hawk Moth."

"I don't know Chat, but this whole situation is really _fishy_."

"Hey, I thought I was the one with the puns." Ladybug giggled and just like that, the tension dissipated.

"I'll talk to Master Fu tomorrow; I won't be at ease until then." Chat Noir nodded satisfied with her reply and prepared to leave, but before he could expand his baton Ladybug caught his tail, "Wait!" She said as he turned to see her with a somber expression, "I owe you an apology Chat." She said and Chat Noir gasped, he wasn't expecting her to apologize this quickly "I was going to tell you about the lost miraculous but... I..." She stared at her feet uneasily not daring to look at him in the eye.

He stopped her from saying anything else putting his hand on her shoulder. "There's no need to apologize, M'Lady. I already forgave you," he said with a smile "But try to be there next time, because, as you said, I can be too trusting, and I always trust you'll come. I'll always wait for you." Finally Ladybug was able to look at him in the eye, he winked at her, and this time he left, leaving a very flushed ladybug behind.

She didn't know it yet, but her heart was starting to shift

_**Translation of the lyrics:** _

_**She's standing right behind me** _

_**She's smiling and turning her eyes** _

_**I think I understand her funny game** _


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter 2** _

_**Quand je le vois, je ne suis plus moi,** _

_**je deviens rouge et parle tout bas** _

_**Le souffle court, j'ai le cœur qui bat** _

After a rather sleepless night, Marinette woke up with dark circles under her swollen eyes. That 5 hours power nap didn't help her state, she felt more tired than she had the day before. She was an active person, after all, inaction only made her feel more tired. To add to this she was also worried about the problem with Sirena. Was she really on their side? She knew her identity... She could use it to blackmail her or use it to turn Chat and her against each other or tell it to Hawk Moth or... Who knew!

To be fair, Sirena was the first person (aside from Master Fu which didn't count) to know her identity and Marinette didn't know how to feel about that. One thing was for sure, things were starting to change, but Marinette didn't know if it was for better or for worst.

"What do you think about Sirena, Tikki?" Marinette asked while getting dressed for the day

"I'm not sure Marinette, but I know she is not an Akuma, I can feel her kwami" Tikki answered from the top of Marinette's mirror where she was sitting eating a chocolate chip cookie

"Right, but is she a good holder or a bad one?"

"It's impossible to know that, Marinette," Tikki said with a calm tone "No one is completely good or completely bad, but only time will tell if she's leaning towards the good or the bad side"

"I guess you're right..."

"But what we can know for sure is if she was telling the truth when she said she had spoken with Master Fu"

"How could she lie about that though? She knew so many things that she could only have known if she spoke with Master Fu"

"Maybe," Tikki answered "But remember she is the holder of the fish miraculous, she can know all of those things just by looking at you," Marinette swallowed hard "However, her miraculous doesn't give her the ability to lie well, and she seemed to be telling the truth, but who knows"

"I guess there's only one way to find out"

Marinette ate her breakfast with her parents and headed out on the streets. It was still very early and the summer weather could still be felt in the air. There were no Akumas in sight, the sun was shining, the birds singing, people running to their jobs and for once Marinette wasn't late for an appointment; but she couldn't let herself enjoy the day, because the only thing in her mind right now was Sirena, more specifically, how was she going to deal with her once Master Fu told her she was nothing more than a vile liar.

She arrived at the Cinema where Master Fu was working, but it was still closed. Which was great, because it meant that only Master Fu was inside. Marinette knocked on the door 4 times in the rhythmic pattern that had become hers and Master Fu password.

"Ah, Marinette," came a voice from behind her that startled her. "You're early," said Master Fu holding a key in his hand to open the cinema for her. Marinette scratched her head. How was it that she was early? She was never early for anything! And then it hit her

"Alya jacked up my phone, I have to fix that, it feels weird to be early" she giggled following him into the dark cinema

"Wait here," Master Fu entered a door near the entrance to the cinema and suddenly all the lights were on. "I have to prepare the cinema for the morning show, but since you're early, I have a few minutes to spare, what can I help you with?" Marinette noticed that Master Fu seemed more at ease than he had the day before. He was breathing normally and didn't seem tired from raking through his belongings looking for the miraculous

"I came to talk to you about Sirena," She said confidently, displaying the Ladybug side of her.

"Who?"

"I knew it!" Marinette exclaimed "She is nothing more than a liar" she started to ramble

"Now calm down Marinette, you'll have to give me a bit more of information, I might be old and wise by some accounts, but I can't read your mind, explain to me what is going on"

"Hehe, right," She giggled nervously "Sirena, she said she came to talk to you yesterday, said that she is the new holder of the fish miraculous."

"ah," Master exclaimed "I didn't know that she had chosen Sirena as her superhero name, I like it, it has something to it," he said distractedly

"So, you do know her" She added after a pause.

"Of course!" he exclaimed, "She came yesterday to tell me how she found the miraculous and practically begged me to let her keep it, she is an honest young lady if you ask me." Marinette was a little disappointed with his answer, she half expected that she didn't pass from a lie, so she and Chat could go back to being just the two of them, and occasionally some friends added to the team, but only in emergencies.

"So, she is on our side?"

"Well, I can't read minds, but I can take pride in my good judgment of character, she came to me humbly, knowing that I had no reason to let her keep the miraculous whatsoever, she could have enchanted me to forget the miraculous existed, or even to make me let her keep it, but she didn't. And she could have done the same thing with you, enchanting you into trusting her, but by the looks of it she didn't either." Master said truthfully

"Or maybe she hasn't, and she is waiting for the right moment to betray us," She said more to himself than to Master, but he still heard it.

"Perhaps, only time will tell for sure, but as far as I know, she has no intentions of doing anything of the kind, she just didn't want to lose her Kwami"

"That's it? What about Hawk Moth? What about fighting for what's right and good? What about protecting the innocent?"

"Everyone has different motivations Marinette, to some is their duty, to some trying to escape, for others is love, whatever it is, as long as Paris is safe and Hawk Moth kept at bay, we can deal with the rest later"

Marinette still wasn't sure what to make of it. She had promised Chat that she would have an answer for him tonight, but she still wasn't sure, she wanted to belive Master Fu, she wanted to trust Chat's judgment, but there was so much in stake, she couldn't simply trust blindly in a person that came out of nowhere holding a miraculous that was not directly given to her.

Marinette left Master Fu's cinema after a few minutes and arrived at her school without noticing how she got there because she was too lost in thought to notice. She entered to her class in automatic mode, too distracted to notice what was going on around her, she didn't even notice when the professor assigned different groups for a class project until Nino tapped her on her shoulder

"Hello partner," Nino said with a smile, but Marinette only looked confused.

"Marinette isn't paying attention to the world around her," Alya said while sliding from her seat to meet with her new partner, who was sitting a few rows behind "She's probably thinking about a certain someone," She said winking at her. In reality, she was thinking about a certain someone, but it wasn't the person Alya was thinking about. She was thinking about Chat Noir, more specifically, what would she tell him.

Nino chuckled and sat next to her finally. Marinette was too lost in thought to notice that Adrien was sitting in the row behind her with Kim as his partner, and Alya was sitting next to the new girl. Their small group was broken, but that was the least of her problems, what if Sirena was in her same school? What if she told everybody who she was? Would they be disappointed it was just plain old her?

Marinette tried with all her might to focus on the task ahead but failed miserably, leaving Nino to do all the hard work while she only nodded in response to whatever he was saying.

A row behind her, Adrien was chatting pleasantly with Kim, who didn't seem to understand completely what the teacher was asking of them.

Adrien was good in keeping his feelings and thoughts away for as long as he needed, even though he too was somewhat worried about the new miraculous holder, he was keeping those thoughts at bay and enjoying the class. Can you believe it? He was actually enjoying that group project.

Contrary to Marinette, Adrien had a great night of sleep, he was excited about the newcomer, he wanted to get to know her, and since she already knew who he was, he was expecting to be able to talk to her more openly, he had longed for a friend with whom to share his experience both as Adrien an Chat Noir. As she had told him, he was following both his heart and his mind, which had come to the agreement that Sirena was trustworthy. His mind told him that her reasoning was logical and in his heart, he just knew she was telling the truth. He was no longer second-guessing himself, now he just wanted Ladybug to believe in her so that they could become a great team.

When the class ended Nino, Adrien and Marinette met near the classroom door, waiting for Alya so that they could go to their next class together. When she finally came, she wasn't alone.

"Hey, guys!" She said when she got near to them. "I want you guys to meet someone" she gestured to the girl next to her "This is Alba, she just moved to the city, and she is amazing!" As it was, I was not as good as Adrien keeping my thoughts at bay, let alone other people's thoughts. "I swear she could be a spy, she has guessed so many things about me, that I didn't even tell her!" She said excitedly.

"Come on Alya," I said more embarrassed than annoyed yet a mixture of both "I'm sure everybody knows you run the lady blog!"

"Yes, but not that Nino is my boyfriend or that Marinette is my best friend! Not even that my favorite color is orange! She must have some sort of superpower I promise ya'll"

"There's no superpower Alya" I lied nervously, worried that Marinette or Adrien suspected who I was, but the thought didn't even cross their minds, all thanks to the miraculous's glamour. "I'm just very observant"

"Let's see," Nino said smiling "If you're soo good at it, then who is my girlfriend" the four of them looked at him askance

"You better say it's me," Alya said silently to me, but loud enough so that the others could hear "Otherwise he'll be in trouble" They laughed

"It is you, Alya," I said still giggling "And I believe he loves you very much" both Alya and Nino blushed and Marinette let out an 'aww'. I didn't need my powers to see that they loved each other madly, both as civilians and as superheroes.

"Hey Alba," said Adrien cheerfully "would you like to have lunch with us? That way we could test your abilities as a spy!" he changed his tone to a mysterious one and raised an eyebrow, but I knew he was joking

"Are you sure?" I asked "I don't want to be the third wheel to the happy couple right here"

"You'll be like the fifth wheel then," he said completely unshaken by my insinuation of him and Marinette being a couple, the thought didn't even cross his mind, but Marinette did notice and blushed a little. "Marinette and I'll be there too, so you don't have to worry about a thing"

"In that case, I'll see you there." Adrien was so sweet, his love for ladybug so sincere, he was only being nice to me, just as much as he was to everyone else. He is so different from Chat, yet they are the same, but I feel like Chat is just the liberal version of Adrien.

We all headed to our respective classes which we didn't share, except for Adrien and Marinette, who shared physics.

Adrien saw Marinette as a nice friend, but when they headed to their class he remembered that he had left her standing on the streets of Paris, late at night to fend for herself. For once he started to feel bad for it, it wasn't the nicest thing to do to a friend. He almost apologized to her several times during the class, but it wouldn't make sense if he did, so he refrained himself, and decided that he would pay another visit to Marinette tonight after patrol, if ladybug showed up on time, that is.

o0o

At lunch, they all sat on a table next to a big window. When I arrived at the cafeteria, I found Nino, Alya, Adrien and Marinette waiting for me. Marinette waved her hand and I followed. It was nice to see that Marinette was not as cautious around me as Ladybug was around Sirena.

"Alba, dear," Alya said as I sat down. "I was wondering since you figured that Nino and I are a couple, can you know who likes who in our class?" oh, I could do more than that, I thought

"I can give an educated guess, I don't just know, I observe and guess" It had been a grave mistake to let Alya know that I was good at 'guessing' things about other people, now she wouldn't shut up about it, which was worse, she was motioning for me to tell that Marinette liked Adrien in an attempt to help Marinette a little with him.

The first and only person that came to Adrien's mind was Ladybug, of course, but for a split second, I thought I saw Chat Noir in Marinette's mind, and then it was Adrien who she was thinking about. It seemed almost like a glitch as if Marinette mentally slapped herself for thinking about Chat that way.

"Well," Alya said impatiently after a few moments "What are you waiting for? Tell us!" Alya knew that Marinette liked Adrien, but she didn't know what Nino knew and hadn't dared to tell her, that Adrien liked Ladybug, and had no eyes for another.

"I'm sorry Alya, but even if I can guess who they like, I can't say it. It would be like sharing their private information"

"I mean, but they're just guesses, right?" Nino said

"Still, it doesn't feel right"

"Oh bother," Alya said annoyed "What's the point of knowing something like that and then doing nothing about it" I shrugged and we continued to eat our lunches in a nice and fun flow of conversation.

o0o

When the afternoon came, Marinette was still not sure what she was going to say to Chat Noir, she still wasn't sure if believing Sirena was the best course of action, but it was as if everything and everybody was telling her to believe her.

"Oh whatever" she exclaimed and Tikki looked at her askance, and before she could say anything about it "Tikki, spots on!" Marinette said, transforming into Ladybug. It was already time to see Chat, so she took her yo-yo and called Chat Noir, who picked up quickly

"Evening M'Lady"

"Hey Chaton," she said her cheeks turning pink without her consent "Where are you?"

"Trocadero," he said simply

"Why? We were supposed to meet at the Eifel Tower"

"Well, I was on my way there, but then you called, and I can't exactly answer your call and use my batton at the same time."

"Well, doesn't matter, Trocadero is a good enough place. I'll be there in two minutes" She hung up the phone and set off for the Trocadero Gardens.

Chat was waiting on the top of the building when Ladybug arrived

"No sign of Sirena?" She asked when he took her hand to kiss it. Disregarding the gesture as nothing out of the ordinary.

"No," He started sitting on the edge of the roof "Not yet anyway"

"Good," she said sitting next to him "I wanted to talk to you first" Chat's ears pricked and he turned to face her

"Did you talk to Master Fu?" she nodded silently "Did he confirm her story?"

"Yeah," She said simply, Chat couldn't help but feel relieved, he wasn't so wrong after all. "But... I'm still not sure" Chat was surprised

"What do you mean? She was telling the truth, wasn't she?"

"Well, what if she was only pretending? What if her power corrupts her?"

"M'Lady, we all have the potential of being corrupted by our powers, just like Hawk Moth and Mayura did. The only way to prevent corruption is by acknowledging that you can be corrupted." He told her hopefully

"I get that, but still..."

"M'Lady, do you trust me?" She was taken aback with the question

"Of course!" She exclaimed

"Why?" he asked again

"Well..." She didn't know how to answer that unexpected question "You've saved my life countless times, you've proven yourself trustworthy, plus is not like I was given a choice when I first met you." She said the last one with a smile on her face

"Yet you know nothing about me, for all you know I could be some psycho or even Hawk Moth himself or somebody waiting for the right moment to stab you in the back" Ladybug was surprised at the plainness in which he said these things. It was true though, she didn't really know much about him, except for the fact that she would put her life in his hands er... paws without hesitating. "It's the same with her" He continues "We don't have much of a choice, she is who she is and we have to deal with it, the question is, do we give her a chance to prove herself loyal and helpful or should we just completely disregard her?"

Ladybug sighed "I guess... if you put it that way..." She answered slowly "I think we should give her a chance"

"Great!" came a voice from below them and when they looked down they saw Sirena in the fountain, her face peeking on the border with her chin resting on her crossed arms while her feet splashing in the water

"Sirena?" Chat Noir said jumping down from the building, Ladybug following close behind. "How long have you been there? And what are you doing there? What if someone sees you?"

"I've been here long enough, plus, there's nobody here, I mean it's Tuesday afternoon, most people are coming back from work or doing more interesting stuff other than spying on Paris's beloved superheroes, who could be seen and heard from where you were sitting"

They looked abashed

"So, you've decided to give me a chance?" I half asked half exclaimed still not coming out of the fountain which felt warm and cozy.

"Yes," Ladybug said. "Apparently you're telling the truth, so we've decided to give you a vote of confidence as you asked"

"You won't regret this!" I leaped from the water in a similar way that dolphin jumps, taking impulse with my arms and legs but falling standing up on the floor next to where Chat and Ladybug were staying. "Now," I said as they looked at me surprised by my maneuver. "We have to make a plan, how are we gonna go about finding Hawk Moth?"

"I feel like we should have a list," Ladybug said with her arms crossed. "of the Akuma victims, there's one in the lady blog, that way we could know who is not Hawk Moth"

"I don't think that's a good idea My Lady" I interjected "Because that's exactly what Hawk Moth would want you to think. I've read enough minds to know that if you want to get away with a crime, the best way is to become a victim of said crime"

"You're saying that Hawk Moth akumatized himself?" Chat asked, obviously the thought never crossed his mind before.

"Maybe, I don't know, but we shouldn't just assume that all of the akumatized people are free of charges. No, if we're gonna make a list we'll have to add every citizen of Paris"

"What?" Ladybug exclaimed "And search them all? That would take months!"

"Maybe, but it's the only way to ensure that we're not missing anyone"

"And where could we find a list like that?" Ladybug said bitterly

"The major's office of course!" Chat said, "The last census was not so long ago, I'm sure there we'll find all of the information we need."

"Great idea!" I said, but Ladybug looked at us with disbelief.

"Are you suggesting that we sneak into the Major's office, get into his database and find the census with all of Paris's citizens?"

"Yeah"

"Pretty much," we said at the same time. Ladybug looked at us with big blue eyes.

"Oh dear, what have I gotten myself into?" she said, more to herself than to us

"Now, the question is when, and... how"

"Let's do it tonight," Ladybug said, and both Chat and I looked at her, surprised at her sudden change of heart. "What?" she exclaimed in frustration. "If we're gonna do something stupid let's do it at once before our minds start working properly again"

o0o

Chat Noir was the first to arrive at the Major's office being the fastest of the group, followed closely by Ladybug. I had tried to catch up following the Seine, but there was still a portion that had to be crossed jumping roof from roof, which I didn't enjoy, I was slow and clumsy compared to my veteran heroes who seemed to swing from rooftop to rooftop without any inconvenience, as swiftly as a bird in flight.

When I finally arrived I was sweaty and trying to catch my breath

"Why are you so exhausted?" Ladybug asked amusedly. "Doesn't your miraculous give you endurance and strength?"

"Yes," I said gasping for air. "Underwater! Not so much outside of it!" when I finally managed to catch up my breath completely I added. "That's why you'll always find me diving into the nearest body of water, it helps me to recover from exertion"

"Well, whatever." Chat said, "What's the plan?"

"I dunno" I shrugged, "I thought you had a plan! You're the pros after all"

"Well," Ladybug said pensive "We need to get into the building, then into the archives, find the census and leave, now, the question is how"

"I guess I could go to the security guy and enchant him, that way he'll move the cameras away or something, after that, you guys enter the office and find the documents"

"Right, but I suppose there are passwords or some other sort of security system," Chat said.

"Watch out!" Exclaimed Ladybug and we ducked on the rooftop. I was confused for a moment, but then I saw, the Major was coming out of the building, next to his assistant

"Perfect," I said and carefully and crawled to the edge of the roof being careful not to be seen, and before I the Major and his assistant got into their car I dug into their memories to see what useful info I could find. After a few moments, I went back to where Chat and Lady were sitting. They looked confused, looking at me with big eyes "Okay" I said without minding their interrogating looks. "I got the passwords and the building's architecture"

"What the..." Chat said

"Here's the plan," I said with a newly found sense of confidence, now that I knew what awaited for us.

After explaining my plan to them, I made my way to the place that I knew would be the closest entrance to the camera room, when I finally found it, the door was locked and I found it could only be opened with an especial card, because I didn't have it, I speared the thing with my trident, the door unlocked immediately but before I opened the door I said "Chant," thus activating my power.

When I swung the door open I started to sing

_"Don't look so frightened,_

_Don't look too scared_

_'Cause what you have seen_

_You soon shall forget_

_Take all the cameras_

_And turn them away_

_Delete the footage_

_And follow me instead"_

The guard was successfully enchanted and did exactly as I told him, without releasing him from the enchantment I took my trident and taking the middle prong out I used it as a phone to signal Ladybug and Chat Noir that it was safe to come into the building

As soon as Ladybug received the signal she looked at Chat.

"Ready?" he said to her motioning with his head

"As ready as I'll ever be." Ladybug was visibly nervous until now her job had only included fighting Akumas and attending some events, never sneaking into one of the most secure buildings in the city.

"At least it's not the Élysée Palace," he said referencing the presidential palace of France. Ladybug chuckled a little releasing some of the tension.

They entered by the same window that Sirena had used to get into the building but kept walking, Chat leading the way since it was dark in there; His hand brushed Ladybug's hand several times, but never actually took it, as if he wasn't sure if she would approve of his gesture.

They reached the door that Sirena had talked about at the end of the corridor, it was locked, with a key card reader that had a red light on which suddenly turned green and the door unlocked, as they entered the room Ladybug's yo-yo rang, and she answered quickl

"You're welcome," came Sirena's musical voice. "Try to hurry up, I can't hold the enchantment forever"

Ladybug hanged up without saying a word, too afraid to say anything, she was soo nervous that her hands started to shake. Chat noticed this and this time held her hand firmly without hesitation and looked at her in the eye. He was nervous as well, but he was better at hiding it. Ladybug appreciated the gesture and smiled back at him, nodding silently.

Together they approached the bookcase on the nearest corner and moved it to find a vault door that had a pin pad. Sirena had told them that the pin was CHLOE or 24563 to be exact. Ladybug entered the pin and the light of the pin pad turned green but then it asked for fingerprint. Ladybug and Chat exchanged looks and nodded at the same time, agreeing silently on something

"Cataclysm" chat whispered activating his power. He placed his hand on the fingerprint scanner that was waiting for a finger to scan, destroying it instead. The door opened immediately, the pad had not just only been damaged, it had completely disintegrated.

They entered the room which was completely dark, apparently when Chat totaled the security system he also damaged the lights. However, Chat was still able to see clearly so he guided Ladybug to the single computer that was placed with it's back to them. Ladybug sat on the black chair that was in front of the desk. She turned it on and entered the password that Sirena had told them, which was just 'password'

She quickly found the archive she was looking for but then realized in horror that there was no way she could take it with her.

"What is it?" Chat asked when he noticed the change in her attitude. "Did you find it?"

"Yeah," she said shakingly "But there's no way we can take it out of the computer, there's no printer and I have nothing to upload it in"

"Use your lucky charm then," he said matter of factly. "Hopefully we'll be lucky enough to get something like a memory stick"

Ladybug nodded, she had partly forgotten about her power, but in a moment she whispered "Lucky Charm" and a little red key with black polka dots appeared in her hands

"Well," Chat said after a long whistle. "That was not what I expected"

Ladybug was deep in thought looking for a way to use her lucky charm, and she soon found it. There in the desk she was seating in front of was a thin drawer with a keyhole in it, without thinking it twice she slid the key into the keyhole, and it opened quickly. There, right in front of her eyes where what seemed like dozens of small black memory sticks, they surely wouldn't notice if one was missing, there were just so many.

She took one and plugged it into the computer locking the drawer as quickly as she had opened it. The memory stick was new, as it had no archives in it whatsoever, someone must have stored them in there in case they needed to download some information. Thank goodness.

Ladybug downloaded the file just in time before Chat's miraculous started to beep. He took his batton and called Sirena.

"We got it, we'll be out in a minute," He said as ladybug unplugged the MemoryStick and stood up abruptly from the chair and set off to the exit with her heart pounding in her ears. They didn't even care about closing the doors behind them, they just ran coming out through the window they had used to enter. A few seconds later, Sirena bolted through the same window, and ladybug took it as her cue and threw the key into the sky

"miraculous ladybug" she said, and the ladybugs fixed everything, the doors, the cameras, and the damaged electrical system. It was as if nothing had happened, and the guard remembered nothing of it because although it had been him who deactivated the security system, moved the cameras away and everything, he had been enchanted the whole time, it would be to him as if time hadn't passed.

"Pound it?" Chat said rather nervously Ladybug an I smiled and pounded our fists with his.

"Here you go," ladybug said to me handing me the memory stick. "whatever you do with it, bring it back tomorrow for Chat to destroy it, I don't want to risk it if it has a tracker or something"

"Don't worry M'Lady" I replied. "By the way, should we have like a regular patrol time? I know you just come out whenever you need to, but if we want this plant to work, at least I need to go around the city to try and get a glimpse of the people's minds"

"Alright," she said "we'll meet a 10pm since I think most people would be on their houses by then." all of their miraculouses beeped at the same time, ladybug's with 3 spots, Chat's with two pawprints and mine with one pearl. "We better get going." Ladybug said taking off, and Chat gestured to go in the same direction she had gone, but I could see that he was actually planning to go to see Marinette, but just couldn't let that happen, knowing what I knew.

"Wait!" I said to Chat. "I needed to tell you something" he turned to face me a little annoyed, knowing that he didn't have much left before he transformed into Adrien

"What is it?" He said kindly anyways. But before I could think of anything to say or do anything to prevent it, I felt my transformation fall. Chat looked at me with big green eyes, and it looked like all the color had left from his face.

"Well," I said looking at my now bare hands "I guess this was bound to happen." I smiled at Chat who was still gaping. "what's wrong kitty? the cat got your tongue?" I asked jokingly

"A... Alba?"

"yes, and you and I go to school together." he was taken aback, although he already knew that I knew who he was. He closed his mouth finally and before the last beep of his miraculous rang, he said.

"Plag, claws in" and let his transformation fall. "how could I not know it was you?" he asked having recovered his voice again.

"It's because of the glamour," I answered simply. "If I didn't have my power it would be impossible for me to figure out who you are, the glamour protects our identities"

He was deep in thought for a moment. "Is this how you knew so many things about Alya?" I could feel my cheeks growing hotter

"That was a silly mistake... I can't help but look at what people are thinking, and she was thinking so much about Nino, and then the Lady blog, it just kind of came out of my mouth before my brain could process it." Chat laughed.

"And now everybody thinks you're some sort of spy?" he laughed even harder "It's not like Alya will shout up about that." the situation was not funny, but it was the nerves making him laugh.

"Tell me about it," I said faking bitterness "I'll have to tell her I'm just a fan of Sherlock holmes o something. But hey!" I said now looking at who had now stopped laughing and was now only chuckling trying to control his laughter "I don't need to read your mind to tell that you have a crush on Ladybug," he stopped laughing altogether and looked at me with a grave expression.

"It's not something I'm trying to hide," he said shrugging. "But my Lady loves someone else"

"Well, you are rather good at hiding your feelings, especially as Adrien" he chuckled again uncomfortably

"Excuse me" came a little voice that we had forgotten all about "but if you don't give me something to eat, I could die!" said the black kwami, Shelly was nodding next to him.

"Right," said Adrien taking a piece of some stinky cheese from his jacket and giving it to Plagg. "Get ready, cause we need to transform back if we're gonna get down from this building." I couldn't help but giggle, their relationship was so funny.

I reached in my purse and found that I had a few crackers and gave them to Shelly, who took them gladly.

We talked for some moments sitting on the edge of the rooftop while our kwamis ate and regained their strength.

"It feels good to have someone I can trust to know my identity, I feel like I finally have a friend that know both sides of me"

"I know, right? someone to take the burden of your identity with you, I feel the same." we smiled contently.

"Well, if you don't mind, there's a place I need to go to before it's too late," he said standing up and getting ready to transform

"I think you should bring her a flower," I said knowing exactly what he was planning on doing.

"Wha... oh right, I can't hide things from you... an apology flower?" he asked sheepishly

"Yeah, that would do." he nodded

"Plagg, claws out," he said as he transformed. "well, sunshine" he bowed jokingly "It time for me to go." he smiled as a form of saying goodbye.

"See you tomorrow kitty." he smiled, understanding that I was talking about school. He turned his heels and leaped off from the edge of the roof using his batton for impulse. He was eager to see Marinette. It was a nice surprise to know that the new hero was also a friend from school, but that thought was now on the back of his head, right now his thoughts were filled with a certain dark-haired girl, and it wasn't Ladybug.

Chat kept leaping from roof to roof until he passed by a garden with hundreds of beautiful flowers, without stopping he took one, a red rose, and continued his way to find the girl that had filled his thoughts the whole day because of course, he owed her an apology.

Chat sat on the rooftop of Marinette's house, hiding in the darkness. He didn't see Marinette in her balcony, so he looked through the window carefully. Marinette was sitting in her desk all ready in her pajamas, she seemed to be doing homework. Chat knocked on the window and she turned around with a start. When she saw Chat though, she relaxed a little, but still was visibly flushed.

"Chat! what are you doing here?" She asked opening the big window to let him in. Chat held out the rose for her to see it, and she took it turning slightly redder. "what is this, Chaton?"

"I owed you an apology," he said plainly. "I shouldn't have left you stranded like I did yesterday, it was my idea to take you for a run, I should have seen that you got back home safely"

"oh," she said, she had forgotten all about that, since she went to follow Chat after he left her, but of course, Chat didn't know that, and he should never know. "I understand Chat, there was something more important you had to deal with."

"It's not like you're not important, princess" He sat on Marinette's desk chair facing the back of the chair and spun in it "But yeah, that thing was urgent, but still, I could have done a better job taking care of you." he was ashamed of his behavior, and he showed this by burring his face in his arms that were resting on the seatback. Marinette kneeled next to him, putting a hand on his shoulder to comfort him.

"I forgive you Chat Noir," she said seriously, without questioning him further.

"Did you get home safely?" he asked facing her suddenly, she went red as a beetroot.

"Of course... er I... mmm walked... got to... to ... to my place... my... my parents didn't notice." she managed to blurt out, talking fast and softly and Chat couldn't completely make out all that she was saying, but he understood what she was trying to say, she got home safe and sound, and it was all that mattered.

He nodded, putting his chin on his fists "Aren't you gonna ask?"

"Ask what?" she looked at him with big eyes.

"About the 'Akuma' I encountered last night," he added air quotes with his gloved hands

"Oh," Marinette understood that she shouldn't know anything about Sirena since she was a secret that should be kept between him and Ladybug. "I'm guessing it wasn't an Akuma or I would have heard of it in the news today." she shrugged standing up from her previous kneeling position.

"That's right, but I'm afraid I can't tell you what or who it was exactly"

"Then why did you bring it up?" she said crossing her room to find a vase where to put the flower so that it would last longer.

"I dunno, for a moment I thought I could just tell you, but now I'm not so sure." He turned around in the chair using his feet to follow Marinette with his gaze, still resting his head on this arms

"I suppose there are some superhero-related thing that you just can't share with me." she found a vase, a tall one made of clear glass, she placed the rose in it and put the vase on her desk next to her computer. She turned around to face him and rested her body against her desk using her hands for support

"Yeah, but to be honest, I don't want to talk about superhero stuff with you, I have Ladybug for that." And Sirena, he thought, but he couldn't tell her that.

"oh, and what is it that you want to talk about?"

"Nothing," he said staring intently at her. "and everything." his answer made her heart beat faster, so fast in fact that she could feel loud and clear in her ears. Chat was not flirting, he was in no way behaving like he did when he was with Ladybug, but seeing him like this, humble and carefree made her heart swell and her stomach flutter.

"What does that mean?" she managed to say noticing that her breath was coming out quick and short.

"Well, you're my friend, I don't have to have something to tell you to come and see you, do I?" he asked.

"Are you inviting yourself to my house?"

"Can I?" Marinette laughed, her stomach was still fluttering but the fact that she could act naturally around Chat made her more at ease.

"Of course Chaton," she said smiling. "Just try to knock on the window before you look in, what if I had been getting changed or something?"

"Maybe you could put up some curtains," he said simply straightening in the chair

"I hadn't thought of that you know? I never thought that anybody could spy on me from that window specifically, especially since we're on the fourth floor"

"Well now you have a friend who's not afraid of the height!" he said motioning to himself "And who wants to come to see you every so often"

"I'll think about it Chat." Chat stood up after a moment

"well, I guess it's time for me to go, It's getting late and I bet you'll want to get a few hours of sleep." he headed towards the window he had used to enter to the room.

"wait!" she said catching his tail.

"hmm? what is it, princess?" He faced her, but now they were standing in close, very close, and Marinette could feel the warmth grow in her face, her pulse quickening and her breath failing her, the look on those green eyes, big and warm, she had never seen him like this, was it the light that was making him seem more... human?

"Thank you," she whispered, talking low and slowly as if to hide the tremble in her voice. "For the flower." Chat nodded with a big smile and leaped out of the window, leaving Marinette looking at his figure disappear in the night.

"Are you okay Marinette?" Tikki asked, coming out of her hiding spot behind the computer for the first time.

"I don't know what's wrong with me, Tikki!" she said closing the window "Chat Noir is nothing more than a friend, why is my heart behaving this way?"

"I guess only you can answer that question." Tikki followed Marinette to her bed, where she finally fell asleep with a slight smile on her face.

_**When I see him, I'm not me anymore** _

_**I turn red and speak softly,** _

_**Shortness of breath, my heart is beating** _

[Hello everyone, Luz here.

I just wanted to clarify one thing, this story is set after the events of "feast," I'm not taking into consideration the events of that questionable final battle or miracle queen, so:

Chloe is still on the good side, Master Fu is still the guardian. However, Felix, Chat Blanc, and love eater did happen. 

I just wanted to explain that :)

Read you later,

-SDG]


	3. Chapter 3

_**Chapter 3** _

_**M'éloigner! C'est la seule chose à faire** _

_**J'ai le cœur à l'envers** _

_**Je sens comme un pouvoir Qui me tire au-delà** _

_**Du mur qui nous sépare!** _

"Chat Noir isn't coming," I said to Ladybug as soon as I heard her land on the roof where I was sitting inspecting the papers on my hands.

Adrien and I had spoken early this morning, he told me that he and his father would have to go to a quick business trip in London, they left right after school and shouldn't be coming back until late tonight; He said he would still go to school tomorrow but that he wouldn't make it to patrol.

"Why not, Sirena?" Ladybug asked as she got closer to the chimney where I was laying my back. It was very dark in the night, but there was enough light that I could make out the letters on the documents I was skimming.

"He said he had an emergency trip, and won't come back until tomorrow afternoon." I lied a little. Ladybug looked away from me, there was sadness in her eyes, a certain longing, but also anger, how dare him leave her alone? What if an Akuma struck, she wouldn't be able to handle it alone. "But that's alright," I added after a moment looking up at her from the stack of papers, "We can handle this patrol alone, can't we, m'lady?"

"Of course we can!" She said pretending to be offended. "I think the two of us can handle it just fine." There was defiance in her voice, but she didn't feel comfortable, especially not around me, because although she said she would give me a vow of confidence, she was still looking at me over her shoulder every now and again, as if I was going to spear her with my trident any minute.

"Actually, I just need you to figure out a method to start searching, I can do the rest on my own, you'll pretty much get bored since I'll just be watching random people's minds without saying much." For a moment Ladybug didn't say anything but took the papers from my hands reading through them.

"Okay, what do you have until now?"

"So, the census you gave me is divided by wards, and I believe each ward is divided by streets and each street is divided by blocks, but I don't know whether I should go person by person or family by family..."

"Do it household by household, I think that's the best way to go, looking at one person at the time, and you can do one block per night because even if it takes us longer than expected then you won't overwork yourself."

"Yes ma'am," I said, but Ladybug was miles away already, not literally that is, her mind was far away, thinking about a certain someone. "You can talk to me, you know? I know Hawk Moth is not your biggest concern right now." She turned to look at me and mentally slapped herself making an effort to get back to the task at hand.

"No, you're wrong! finding Hawk Moth is our responsibility now!"

"Marinette," I said and she looked at me with big eyes, surprised, scared, shocked. She knew I knew, but I had never addressed her like that before. "You're naked in my gaze, you can't hide your thoughts from me, and they're far away, out of the city to be precise"

"I... I don't know what..." she slurred

"Oh stop it, Mari! If you want to deny it to yourself, fine, it's none of my business, if you don't want to talk about it just say so, but denying something that I can see crystal clear is just annoying!" I snapped.

"First of all, don't call me Mari, what if someone hears you, and second, Get out of my head already and mind your own business," She said crossing her arms and looking away.

"You think I want to listen to your mental ramble about Adrien, Chat Noir, and even poor Luka?"

"Why do you care? You know none of them!" She retorted

"I just don't know who Luka is, but I know Chat, and I care deeply for him! And I also know Adrien 'cause I go to school with him..." I snapped that last line without thinking it through and covered my mouth with my hand as soon as the words slipped my mouth... When you read other people's thoughts you have a tendency to lose the grip your own.

"What!?" She said still mad at me, but to be honest I didn't mind revealing my identity to her.

"Well, that's right Marinette, we go to school together, you and I, and we even had lunch together earlier."

"Wha... Alba?"

"You guessed it..."

"But how... why?"

"I told you my story already, now you can add my civilian identity to it."

"Is this how you guessed Alya's..."

"I didn't really guess, but I had to say that to protect my... and your identities," I said

"Why? Why do you care?"

"Because you're my partner, and since I can't fight alongside you, the least I can do is to protect yours and Chat's identities." I sighed. "Marinette, even superheroes need allies, that's all I want to be for you, I'd like to be friends as well, but I know I can't ask that of you just because."

For a while, she didn't say anything. But then I saw a glimpse of a tear in her eye.

"I'm so tired..." she let out and started sobbing, at first I thought it came out of nowhere, but no, she has been holding it in for so long. I came near to her and hugged her. "I can't tell it to anyone, I have lots of friends but I have to hide who I am from everyone, I'm always lying, I can't even be with the boy I like, I can't even be with my friends all the time because that would put them in danger. I lied even to Chat Noir to protect my secret, I'm tired of living a double life!" She was almost screaming now crying inconsolably.

I let her cry for as long as she needed, she had to let it all out, she had already talked to Luka, but he couldn't understand the whole story behind her tears.

"There, there Mari, you're not alone," I said after a few minutes, stroking her head. "I'm here for you, and your secret is safe, you don't have to hide anymore. You won't lose your miraculous because I know who you are, you couldn't prevent me from knowing it, this is on me." She let out a small sob.

"I feel like I can only be half of who I am with people, like no one ever knows me completely."

"Now you have me, Mari, you don't need to lie to me, mainly because you can't." I sighed. "And you don't need to pretend you are not gonna miss Chat Noir tonight"

"What?!" she separated from me and looked at me with big watery eyes.

"Isn't he the one that makes you feel like yourself the most? That's why you're sad, you wait for him every night because he's your friend and even if you have to hide the fact that you're Ladybug, you're able to forget all about it." She blushed.

"I guess I can't deny it to you... I was expecting Chat tonight! There, I said it, happy?" She looked away again, arms crossed.

"Because you like him." It wasn't a question.

"What? No! I mean, not like that!" I looked at her raising a questioning eyebrow. "He's a great friend and I have a lot of fun with him, that's all." I wanted to push her to admit it to herself, Chat Noir was the reason behind her smile and her tears, she had to mentally slap herself to think about someone else, but it was too soon, and if I pushed her too hard, it could prevent their relationship from developing furder.

"What about Luka then? He likes you." She smiled.

"I like him too, but... not in that way... He's a great guy, but I just... I can't picture us together." Ah, that was true, she had a tender side for Luka, but he just wasn't the one. Luka only crossed her mind when someone mentioned him, his face didn't come to her mind naturally, she had to force herself to think about them together, and even when she did, she didn't like what she saw. But she also couldn't hurt him, he was a precious friend to her, but that was that.

"Mari, as much as I'd like to keep talking about boys and stuff," I said after a moment of silence, more to stop myself from saying anything else that could add to Marinette's emotional estate. "I have a job to do tonight, and you need to rest, you're too tired, both mentally and physically, go home, have some rest. If you want you can come to my place tomorrow and we'll chat some more, what do you say?"

"You're right I guess," she shrugged. "Where do you live, again?"

"Here!"

"Here?"

"Yeah, we're standing on the roof of my house"

"For real? My place is right in that corner!" She pointed to what I knew was her parent's bakery.

"I know" I giggled "Come by whenever you want, neighbor!" I said with a grin, and she giggled.

"Alright then, see you around, Sirena." She lept from one roof to the other feeling lighter, as if some heavy burden had been lifted from her shoulders now that she knew who Sirena was. Now Ladybug knew that she could trust her because she would have never told her about her identity if she was planning something evil. There's this thing about heroes and their identities, a bond is formed when the identity is out.

o0o

Marinette was able to rest peacefully that night, she felt more comfortable now knowing that she could trust the person that knew her identity, she wasn't a random stranger, she was her neighbor and her classmate! She could rest assured that even if Sirena ever tried something sketchy, she would have something to bargain with.

That reassuring promise had taken over the fact that Chat Noir didn't come that night, Marinette had forgotten all about him! But she would have time to scold him later.

Without thinking too much about it, Marinette decided to pop up at Alba's place. She transformed and jumped out of her room's window. It was early morning, almost nobody was around but she still made sure that nobody was following her, yet she was much too excited to think about the consequences of her actions.

Quickly she arrived at what she thought to be the window to Alba's room, and when she looked in she saw her silver kwami lying on a tiny bed on her nightstand, and she knew this was the place. She knocked once, but there was no answer. She knocked twice, harder this time, but no answer yet. The third time she knocked as hard as she could manage without breaking the window, now growing anxious because if someone saw her...

Suddenly, the windows flung open, revealing a mass of hairs flying in every direction and under all that hair was a face with ginormous dark circles under her bloodshot eyes. Her pajama hung loose on her shoulders and she looked at Ladybug with a killer look and said:

"What?" with a bitter tone.

"What happened to you, Alba?" Ladybug said entering the room.

"What happened to you, Alba" She mocked her with a high pitch tone. "I'll tell you what happened to me! I was up patrolling until 12 am, but I swear to you that even if none of our neighbors are Hawk Moth they do have a lot of disturbing thoughts! I mean, there's one dude that's cheating on his wife, a girl having suicidal thoughts, a Lady suffering from depression, a dude who's actually a pedophile! These people! I swear Marinette, they have issues!" I yelled pacing through my room impatiently. "And so, after that, I come to the comfort of my perfect bed only to find out that I can't sleep thinking about what they are thinking! So I roll around in my bed until 6 in the morning when I was finally able to blackout, and can you tell what time is it, Marinette?"

"7:30?" she said shyly.

"7:30! Which means that you woke me up from a 90 minutes beauty sleep that I pretty much needed, thank you very much!" I spat. plumping on my bed with my arms crossed.

"Well I thought you'll be awake, school starts in half an hour."

"Screw it, I'm not going," I said cuddling in my bed again which was especially comfy today.

"I know how you feel Alba, but you can't just not go to school" Marinette detransformed and sat next to me. "Believe me, I know what it is like to be sleep-deprived since I've had to catch a late-night Akumas and I know it's not the best of the experiences. But you still have to go to school, if not people are going to start asking questions, and what about your parents?"

"They're out of town, and I'll just make up an excuse like, I'll say I overslept because I was reading fanfiction until late night, I've heard that's a legit excuse."

"I've tried that, they took my phone for a week..." She sighed.

"It's not my lack of sleep that I'm worried about though..." I said after a moment of silence. "All these people... I want to help, but I don't know how! Except for that pedophile dude, him... I want to spear him with my trident." Ladybug looked shocked, but understood at the same time.

"I don't think you have to go to that extreme Alba, like... why don't you just enchant him?"

"And what, make him forget what he's done already? Oh no, that's too nice for him."

"Well, maybe let him remember, but make him feel guilty about it, change his mind so that he'll never do it anymore." I sighed.

"I can't help them all, can I?"

"Not as Sirena, but there's plenty you can do as Alba, on extreme cases like that, you should use your powers, but there are instances when a smile, a kind word, and a simple gesture can do more than a brainwash will ever do." She smiled.

"You do have a point..."

"Of course I do, now, please go and get changed, we gotta go to school"

"Ugh fine!" I groaned getting out of my bed. "I love you precious," I said to my bed. "I'll be back to you!" and blew a kiss to it. "By the way Mari, I'd like you to look at something." I led her to my closet, where there was a cardboard box hidden among a pile of clothes. I opened the box to reveal a brand new laptop. "I ordered it a few days ago, it arrived yesterday late at night."

"What is it for?"

"Well, I figured, if we're gonna have to print the whole census it's going to take a lot of paper, and to be honest, ain't nobody got time for that, plus think about the environment, all those trees dying and I'm only using all that paper for one moment and puff! of to the trash can... Also, all that paper can be used as incriminating evidence against us."

"So you bought a whole laptop just for that?" I grined at her.

"Look!" I opened It. "It's convertible! that way I can use it as a tablet. I love it!" She laughed at my excitement.

"If it makes you happy," she shrugged.

"It's not the only reason why I got it though, my old one was broken so I needed a new one."

"Do your parents know about it?"

"Yep, but all they know is that I needed a new laptop and they let me buy this one."

"Fine, but be careful with it, like you said, there's a lot of incriminating evidence in there."

"No worries boss, I'll be as quiet as a mouse." She smiled.

"Right so, we still gotta go to school."

"ugh! I haven't even had breakfast, and I'm starving!"

"You get changed, I'll go back to my place and bring you something to eat on the way."

"Fine, but just use the door, you know, like normal people do." She rolled her eyes but used the door anyways. Ha! I love this girl XD.

o0o

School was an ordinary business. Adrien was there today, looking as fresh and angelic as always, but his thoughts were somewhere else. For once he was remarkably tired since he had traveled to and from England the day before. I wonder how much sleep he got, if any, more than me, that's for sure.

"Hi Adrien," I told him after the last class when I saw him in front of the school, he was by himself for once, he seemed to be waiting for someone. "How was your trip?"

"Exhausting, we arrived at midnight."

"I feel you, that's the time I got home from you-know-what."

"Right, how was that?"

"Not much to report, just a bunch of creepy people, but not powerful enough to be you-know-who." I winked at him and he grinned.

"Hello, Adrien." Came a voice from behind him.

"Kagami!" Said Adrien excitedly when he turned to see the person that had talked to him. Kagami came near and started to examine me thoroughly, arriving at the conclusion that I was nothing to be worried about since she was obviously better than me. I would have been offended by her thoughts if I hadn't seen the thoughts behind her reasoning. I didn't need my powers to see that she was in love with Adrien, plus I remembered her from Adrien's mind. "Kagami, this is Alba, she is a friend, and one of my classmates." She bowed as a greeting but said nothing otherwise, though I noticed that it was because she didn't know what to say.

"Nice to meet you Kagami." I extended my hand to say hi but she ignored it.

"Are you ready for fencing, Adrien?" She asked looking at him with bored yet sparkly eyes.

"Yes, I just need to say something quick to Alba." Adrien turned to me and said loud enough so only I could hear. "See you tonight?" I smiled and nodded.

"Though I'm sure there's someone you want to see more." He didn't try to hide the smile when Ladybug popped up in his thoughts. He waved at me and left with Kagami, who was waiting for him on the steps nearby.

o0o

"Lonely night?" Came Chat Noir's voice from behind me. I was sitting on the edge of a rooftop with my legs crossed looking at the tablet in my hands. The Eifel tower was nearby and I was getting ready to 'scan' tonight's block. "Where's Ladybug?"

"I gave her the night off," I told him plainly without looking back at him. "As I'm giving it to you after you destroy this memory stick." I handed him the black object.

"What, why?" he looked at me with big blue eyes. But he took the memory stick and destroying it with his cataclysm.

"Because I don't really need you here, it distracts me, plus there's not much for you to do. If you ever want to come you're welcome to, but it's my job to look for Hawk Moth, your job is to fight him."

"Aww," he complained and detransformed to feed Chat, hiding in the shadow of a chimney.

"Come on Chat, you know you just wanted an excuse to get out of your house, but there are better ways to spend a night out than helping your homegirl find an old freak."

"I guess so..." He seemed downcast and he just sat there for a few minutes waiting for Plagg to finish his cheese. But then an idea popped up in his head and as a result, he stood up abruptly. "Plagg, claws out!" He said and transformed back into Chat Noir. "See you later then?"

"Sure, say hi to Marinette from me!" I told him but he was already jumping swiftly from roof to roof, taking in the view and enjoying the gentle breeze. A few moments later he was standing on the roof of Paris' most famous bakery.

Marinette was standing on her balcony, wearing a pink fluffy blanket to protect her from the cold. She was leaning on the railing of the balcony and looking at the horizon, as she often did when she was deep in thought.

"Ah yes! The beautiful Parisian nightly landscape. What a sight!" Said Chat walking on Marinette's railing until finally sitting next to her, on her left side. This startled her at first, but then she relaxed.

"I never get tired of it," she said blinking at him but then looked back to the sky. "The view helps me to clear my thoughts."

"Understandably so," he answered and remained silent for a while. They didn't need to say anything and they were happy enough to be that way because they weren't trying to impress the other. "Can I ask you something?" Said Chat breaking the comfortable silence. Marinette turned to look at him, she smiled and nodded. "It's about... a Lady."

"Ladybug." it wasn't a question.

"Not exactly... another Lady."

"You have another Lady? I thought you were faithful to Ladybug?" She said jokingly.

"Well, I'll have you know that I'm quite popular with the Ladies." His shoulders expanded denoting pride, but he shook it off and went back to his relaxed position. "But I only have eyes for one." Marinette tried to hide the color that had grown on her cheeks. "But this is not about her. There's this girl, let's call her... Karla, she... she is a good friend. I like her, I really do, she is fun, she gets me and we have a lot in common."

"What's the problem with that?"

"She has everything I would like in a girl, and my father likes her, (that's saying something!) I feel like if we ever were to be together, it would make everybody happy."

"everyone except you." She finished for him.

He sighed. "She confessed you know? That she is in love with me."

"What did you say?"

"That I needed time." He laughed bitterly. "I swear I sound like those girls from soap operas."

"You need time for what?"

"Ladybug... she is still the owner of my heart, she'll always be. And Karla... I think she deserves better than being second in a guy's heart and that's all I can offer."

"You're talking about what she deserves, but what do you want?"

"Marinette, the one thing I want I can't have." Marinette looked at him with big eyes but then looked down. "I'm okay with that, it's enough for me to be Ladybug's friend, and I guess one day I'll have to move on, but... I'm just not ready."

"I understand Chat, more than you think."

"Really?" He looked at her, hope glittering in his eyes.

"Yeah, there's this boy... Luka, he's nice, charming and comfortable to be around. It's easy to be with him but, I don't..."

"You don't' love him."

"Love is a big word... I like him, just not in the way he likes me. I feel like I'd have to force myself to 'love' him if we were ever to be together." She added air quotes with her hands.

"That's exactly how I feel about Ka...rla." He almost said Kagami there, but Marinette didn't seem to notice.

"That's not right you know, having to force yourself to be with someone, neither of you is gonna be happy that way."

Chat relaxed even more, and turned away from the view, now facing Marinette's house he rested his elbows on the railing, again adopting his relaxed posture. "Look at us, Marinette, two Bachelors in Paris."

"I would be more of a bachelorette, you dork!" She giggled. Mimicking him and turning from the landscape.

"Ah, same thing... Thanks for listening to me Marinette, I feel better now, about Karla."

"Chaton, you're free, if you want to remain a bachelor for the rest of your life you can. There's no rush, is there?" She shrugged, unconsciously getting a step closer to him.

"That doesn't sound half bad." He looked up at the sky leaning a bit more to his left side on the railing. "But, I don't think that's what I want for the rest of my life." Having said that, he turned to look down to Marinette, at the same time she turned to look up at him. Their faces were inches apart, so much so that they could see clearly into each other's eyes. They stayed like that for what felt like minutes, hours, days! But it couldn't have been more than a few seconds until Chat's heart started pounding, doing something it had never done before. This caused Chat to panic and turn away from Marinette rather abruptly.

He scratched the back of his head awkwardly, and Marinette cleared her throat.

"I better get going." He said bluntly.

"So soon? you just got here." Marinette couldn't help the disappointment in her tone as she fixed the blanket that had slipped from her shoulder.

"Yep, I have a... patrol tonight. Ladybug must be wondering where I am." He didn't know that Marinette knew that there was no such thing, but Marinette couldn't let him know that she knew that he was lying.

"Alright..." She said awkwardly, but before she could say anything else. he had lept from her balcony, disappearing into the darkness.

o0o

Chat Noir went home right after that, he didn't even try to find Ladybug, he knew he wasn't thinking straight, and he didn't want Ladybug to know.

"What just happened, Plagg?" He asked the black kwami as soon as he detransformed.

"You tried to kiss your 'friend' Marinette," he added the air quotes with his tiny paws.

"I didn't try to kiss her!" He almost yelled but remembered to keep his voice down since he was supposed to be asleep by now. "We were leaning on the railing and turned to face each other at the same time, that's it!"

"If you're so sure about what happened, then why do you ask me? I have more important things to do than hear you complain about yet another girl." Plagg retorted, flying away to a plate of cheese that was sitting near Adrien's bed.

"Plagg, I'm serious! I didn't try to kiss her!"

"Are you trying to convince me or yourself?" He asked with a mouthful of camembert, and when Adrien didn't respond he added. "listen, kid, so what if you were in a compromising situation, it's not like anyone is about to find out."

"Marinette knows, and you know Ladybug is the one I love!"

"So what? She's not your girlfriend, it's not like you're cheating on her."

"Well, it feels like it!" Adrien threw himself in his bed and snuggled in his covers. "My heart was pounding so hard..."

"Kid, it's a heart, it's only job is to beat, you should be worried if it didn't." Plagg sat on the pillow next to Adrien's head.

"It was different though," Adrien said nothing more after that, and Plagg knew that he was asleep now.

"If only you knew!" Plagg said quietly and went to sleep.

o0o

Chat Noir didn't visit Marinette the next day, or the day after that one. Marinette only saw him whenever there was an Akuma, and she couldn't talk to him about what had happened the other day in the balcony. Marinette didn't understand it. Was Chat Noir avoiding her? Why? Did she say something wrong? Did she do something wrong? Nothing happened between them that day, sure, they were inches apart from each other, but they had come that close before, and even closer.

A week went by and it was Friday again, finally, Sirena summoned them on the Eifel Tower, she wanted to give them a report of her findings.

"Alright, I've gone through at least 10 blocks, person by person, and no signs of Hawk Moth... not even one clue." Sirena said bitterly.

"So, you called us to tell us that you have nothing to tell us?" Chat asked annoyedly.

"Prety much."

"This is taking too long!" Chat continued, "We need a better plan."

"And what do you suggest, Einstein?" Sirena asked annoyedly.

"Why don't you start with the Akuma victims?" He said after a moment of thinking.

"I told you that we couldn't just focus on the Akuma victims, because he might..."

"My point exactly!" he cut her off. "If what you said is true and Hawk Moth was able to akumatize himself, then we should be looking at the victims first, at least to discard them." Sirena was taken aback, why hadn't she thought of that?

"I guess that could work. What do you think, Ladybug?" Ladybug was miles away, or at least her mind was. She hadn't contributed to the conversation, not once! It was so unlike her. But I knew that she was still thinking about Chat Noir, especially now that he was right in front of her. She wanted to talk to him, she wanted to hug him, but she couldn't because she was Ladybug now, and Marinette was the only one able to do that. "Ladybug?" I asked again. "Earth to Ladybug!"

"What?" She snapped. "Yeah, whatever you said, it's a good idea." She said simply and went back to daydreaming mode.

"Right... then I guess I'll need a list of the Akuma victims," I said.

"There's one on the Ladyblog, let's check it out and see if someone's missing." I took my laptop/tablet and looked up the Ladyblog. And started scrolling. "There!" Chat stopped me. And I clicked the link he pointed to.

"Is there anyone missing?" I asked looking at the list.

"Catalyst, which I'm pretty sure it's the same person as Mayura."

"Alright," I said typing that note. "But we don't know who either of those are."

"Right, but I'm sure when you find Hawk Moth you'll find Mayura."

"Great, I think we're free to go and enjoy our Friday evening like I know Ladybug will." At the mention of her name, she turned to look at me and I motioned for her to go.

"Oh, okay, see you around." And she left hurriedly and as Chat was motioning to do the same I stopped him.

"Not so fast you," I said to him. And he stopped where he was. "Why are you avoiding Marinette?"

"Wha... how do you know about that?"

"She's my classmate?" I said matter-of-factly...

"Right..." He sighed. "Can't you read minds? You already know what happened."

"I can read minds alright, but sometimes I want to hear you talk." He sighed.

"Well, we were really close, like physically close, and then my heart started to beat..."

"It's a heart Chat, beating is the only thing it does." I interrupted him giggling and he was completely unamused by my reference to his kwami. "Man, I love Plagg."

"Yeah, yeah, bake him a cake." He had his arms crossed now and was looking away, annoyed.

"I'm sorry Chat, I'll be serious now."

"It's just that... Marinette is a great girl, but my heart belongs to Ladybug, and when it started acting up when I was with her, I panicked! I ran away, like a coward!" He plumped himself on the edge of the tower burring his face in his hands

"Do you... like Marinette?"

"No!" he tensed up, but then remembered who he was talking to. "I mean, I do, but not in that way."

"Is it like Kagami?"

"Not exactly, it feels different with Marinette."

"Go on," I added when he didn't say anything else.

"They're both great friends, I think the difference is that Marinette knows me both as Chat and as Adrien, even if she doesn't know that. I feel like I don't have to hide from her unless it's about keeping my identity a secret, but you know..."

"So you do like her, but don't like like her."

"I don't know why that makes sense but yeah, pretty much."

"Then why are you running away from her?"

"I'm not!" I looked at him raising a questioning eyebrow. "Okay, fine! It's just that, my heart is acting up, and it doesn't feel right, I can't control it, and I don't want to hurt Marinette."

"Why would you?"

"I can't be in a relationship with her..."

"bahahahaha!" I started laughing interrupting whatever he was about to say.

"What's so funny?" He looked at me while I was wiping away a tear and trying to calm myself down.

"Chaton," I sat next to him and looked at him in the eye. "If I was to be in a relationship with every person that has made my heart flutter, I would be married to Tom Holland, and Chris Hemsworth, and would be pregnant with Zack Effron's baby!"

"But those are all actors."

"Well then, I would be with my kindergarten crush, or my elementary school sweetheart, or my high school teacher!"

"Your teacher?"

"You're missing the point Chat!" I added before he lost the track of my argument. "Were not forced to do something every time someone makes our heart flutter. If it makes you uncomfortable to think about Marinette in a certain way then don't, there's nothing wrong with being just friends." Now is not the time for them to be together, I had to tell myself. Even if I ship them, I can't force them to anything... But a little push can't hurt. "Just don't act as if she didn't exist! You're friends, aren't you?"

"Yeah..."

"Then be just yourself! Are you gonna throw away a cute friendship just because your heart fluttered once?"

"No."

"That's my boy! So... what are you gonna do?"

"I'm gonna go see her!" He stood up abruptly and left without saying anything else.

These two dorks are going to get married one day, even if it's the last thing I do. And I'm gonna be there to see it.

_**Walk away! It's the only thing to do!** _

_**My heart is upside down,** _

_**I feel a power, which draws me beyond** _

_**the wall between us** _


	4. Chapter 4

_**Chapter 4** _

_**Mais pourquoi?** _

_**Je n'ose rien lui dire.** _

_**Je le veux que pour moi** _

_**Sa lumière, son sourire** _

_**Traversant pour un soir** _

_**ce mur qui nous sépare** _

When Chat arrived at Marinette's house she was seated on her desk, seemingly writing something, but all Chat could see were distorted images since something was blocking his view. Regardless, he knocked on the window, this startled Marinette at first, but she stood up to open the window nonetheless.

"Good evening, princess." Chat said and Marinette looked at him with big eyes and opened mouth. "What is it, princess? The cat got your tongue?"

'I wish.' she thought, mentally slapping herself for even thinking something like that, but didn't say anything

"I see you put up curtains." Chat noted as he entered the room, he noticed that it was the curtains that were blocking his view a few moments ago.

Marinette nodded but still was staring at him as if he was a ghost coming straight from the beyond.

"Are you feeling okay Marinette? You seem a little flushed." He went near to her to touch her forehead with his gloved hand, but she turned away.

"Yeah... No, I'm fine! It's just..." She started to walk away but then turned to look at Chat. "You disappeared for a week, and then you come back out of nowhere. How do you expect me to react?" Marinette snapped.

"About that... I'm sorry Mari, I... I've been busy."

"Lot of Akumas to fight?" She asked coldly.

"Yeah... and no." She was taken aback, she was expecting him to lie, but he hadn't, not entirely. "There have been some Akumas, but there always are... the real reason why I didn't come is that I haven't been feeling like myself lately, there are a lot of things I've had to think about..." He told her while reclining on the wall next to the window.

"What kind of things?" She asked nonchalantly.

Chat shrugged and then grinned. "Just things... you know I have a life outside of the mask, and I'm afraid I can't tell much."

"Is it about Karla?" Marinette asked about the girls he had talked about the last time she had seen him, though she was a little embarrassed by her own question it turned out sometimes she forgot that even her friend Chat had to keep secrets from her. She didn't always regret having a double life, but now was one of times she did.

"A little... but that's enough about me." He changed the subject before she could ask anything else, pushing himself from the wall to face Marinette. "Tell me the truth Mari, did you miss me?" He grinned at her putting a hand on his chin.

"No." She answered crossing her arms and turning away.

"No?" slowly, he got closer to her with a smug smile, looking for her face trying to make her look at him.

"No." She repeated turning away from him again.

"Not a single bit?" He got in front of her and adopted his cat posture on the floor.

"Not for a moment."

"Aww, then I'll guess I'll go home then." He said with a pout.

"As you should..." She said trying to hide a smile. "I don't want a stinky cat in my house!"

"I'll just find another girl to feed me croissants then..."

"There'll be plenty of those out there." She was starting to fail in hiding her grin.

"Yea... I'll just find one that smells like cheese!" Chat said cheerfully.

"What the..." this time Marinette burst into laughter not being able to contain herself anymore.

"The most delicious cheese!" Chat said again, making her laugh even more. Her laugh was contagious and soon he started giggling.

"Why do you want a girl that smells like cheese?" She asked holding her stomach.

"I like cheese." He said joking again.

"But a girl that smells like cheese?"

"Hey, if she smells like cheese it means she has cheese stored somewhere." He shrugged with a grin.

"That's so cheesy, Chat Noir..." she said still laughing.

"Oh no, you did not just make that pun!" He chuckled.

"You're a cheesy person." She said again and Chat started to laugh. The situation was so random that they couldn't hold their laugh. Yes, their jokes were pretty cheesy, but any tension that had accumulated in the room was lifted like fog.

"So..." Chat said after a few moments wiping away a tear. "You did miss me."

"I didn't miss your cheesy puns, that's for sure," Marinette said sitting on her _chaise longue_.

"Fair enough." He said laying on the floor with his hands on the back of his head. From where he was sitting, he could see Marinette's bed, and on the wall, there was aboard, he had seen it many times, but there was something different about it, he could also see the wall behind her computer, something was missing there as well. "What happened to all the photos of what's his face... that kid... Adrien Agreste?!"

"What?!" she turned to see where he was looking, the color draining from her face. "Oh, those..." she blushed now. "Them... I had them for... inspiration, you know, for my fashion designs, you know since he is a fashion model and all."

"Yeah, but why did you take them off?" He was genuinely interested; he knew Marinette was a fan of his and it felt weird that she wasn't anymore.

"They weren't bringing me any inspiration, so I decided to take them off." She shrugged but was still blushing.

"Oh... so what's your new source of inspiration?" She shrugged again but said nothing. "Is that what you were doing before I came in?" She nodded. "Can I see?" He stood up quickly and headed for the desk, Marinette tried to catch up to him, but he was faster than her and took her sketchbook before she could do anything about it.

He was looking at the design of a dress, it was sleeveless, entirely black, with a high neck. It had pockets on the hips and the sketch model had her hands in them, the dress ran all the way to her knees and had an asymmetrical skirt. Chat Noir turned to the next page, there was another black dress with a _bateau neckline_ , the model was wearing black see-through gloves and had a bell-shaped black skirt. The next dress was black and green, it looked like a swirl around the model's body. And so on, there were around half a dozen designs, all in black, some had some other components, but it was clear who Marinette's new source of inspiration was.

"Marinette, I'm flattered." He said putting his hand on his chest, clearly touched by Marinette's gesture.

"Who said it was you?" She said taking away the sketchbook from him.

"Well then, I want to meet this other black and green cat fella."

"It could be Kitty Noir, remember? when Ladybug used your miraculous?"

"Ah, but you said it could be, not that it was." He told her with a smile.

"Fine! It is you, I couldn't help it, you disappeared and all I could think about was what I did wrong to make you leave the way you did." She said looking away, "I guess I took all my worries and reflected them in my sketches."

"Well, I guess I'll have to stop comming more often." He said looking at her with a tender expression.

"What?"

"I mean, these designs are great! If they came out of a week of you worrying about me..."

"Don't joke about those things, Chat Noir." She cut him off turning to face him with a furrowing brow.

"Okay, okay, I was joking." He said putting his hands up as a sign of defeat. "But I mean it though, your designs are amazing! You should make some male outfits too, maybe then I can model them for you."

"You, modeling my clothes?" She asked, the half smile returning to her face and the furrow disappeared. "You don't strike me for a model, Chaton," she giggled.

"I'm full of surprises, princess! There's a lot about me that you don't know."

"Like what, are you gonna tell me you're a musician as well?" She looked at him challengingly.

"I was born playing the keys!"

"No, you did not!" She was shocked.

"Cat's honor!" He presses his right hand on his heart and went to sit on Marinette's desk chair.

"So, what other surprises are you hiding? Are you gonna tell me you're a science person?"

"I've been thinking about it, either science or business administration, either works for me."

"You're kidding."

"Why is it so hard to believe?" He chuckled. "I love science! Physics is my favorite subject! And I'd love to make a career on it."

"Then what about business administration? Where did that come from?" She asked still not sure if she believed him entirely.

"In case it'll be up to me to run my family's business, though I'd rather not."

"And what would that be?"

"Let's just say it's not something I'm entirely into, but I can make it work if I want to. Let's just see where life takes us." He relaxed in the chair, but then looked at Marinette who seemed upset by something. "What's the matter, princess?"

"Nothing, it's just that..." she sighed. "My parents want me to run the bakery when I'm older, I mean, I have no issues baking stuff but... it's not what I want to do for the rest of my life."

"I feel you, Mari," he sighed, "But hey, we have time to think about these things, let's not stress over it right now."

"Speaking of stress," Marinette said propping up from her seat and walking to her computer. "There's this new movie on Netflix, people keep saying it's terrible and that I should watch it, but I'm always to busy to do it, but now that you're here I could use that excuse."

"Sure! I love a terrible good ol' movie." Chat said, and while Marinette searched the movie on her computer Chat accommodated the room, moving the _chaise longue_ closer to the computer and placing some pillows around.

The movie was supposed to be a romantic comedy, but the lines were cheesy, the characters were underdeveloped, and Chat and Marinette had a great time criticizing it. It seemed like Chat had a sarcastic comeback for every line in the movie and it made Marinette have a good laugh, but she didn't fall behind, he enjoyed herself by finishing the characters lines with something she found more suitable or just making fun of their outfits. Chat's smile was the sweetest thing Marinette had ever seen, and his laugh was musical! Marinette didn't know what it was, but she was sure she saw him glow every time he chuckled. Chat Noir was a great jokester, but Marinette had rarely ever seen him actually laughing! And the fact that she was part of the cause of his smile gave her the warmest feeling ever.

This was until they got to the serious part of the movie when the character started to embrace their feelings for each other in the cheesiest most ridiculous way possible. This made them sleepy, and little by little Marinette placed her head in Chat's shoulder and Chat placed his head in her head.

When they woke up the movie was over and Netflix was suggesting another movie to watch.

"I think we fell asleep _chaton_ ," Marinette said rubbing her eyes.

"Yeah... it was a good movie though."

"It was terrible." She snapped

"It was awful." He finished and they giggled. "What time is it though?" Marinette stood on her knees and moved the mouse on the computer to see what time it was.

"3:30 am!"

"What? How long was that stupid movie?"

"I don't know..."

"Yeah... I better get going, this is the time when the spirits come to haunt us from the beyond"

"Don't tell me you believe in those things." She said jokingly.

"Nah, but it is the time the streets are darkest, it's perfect for me to leave." He motioned to the window, but before heading out he looked at Marinette. "I had fun today, I promise I won't disappear out of nowhere again."

"You better." She said with sleepy eyes. He smiled and jumped out of the window disappearing in the dark.

Chat came to visit her the next day, and they had a lot of fun as well, laughing, looking at memes, watching movies, they even started binge-watching a series on Netflix! But Chat didn't come back on Sunday, and this disappointed Marinette more than it should have.

o0o

By Monday Marinette's thoughts were all over the place, except on the physics assignment in front of her. The problems didn't make sense to her, there were words and numbers but none of them made sense.

"Need help, Marinette?" Adrien, who was sitting next to her, asked with a smile. "You seem a little bit worked up."

"Ah, yes... I'm a little distracted this morning, I could use some help." Adrien leaned next to her and explained how to solve the problems, and Marinette tried with all her might to focus on the task at hand.

"See? You just have to use the formula." Adrien finished the problem and Marinette finally understood.

"Oh so, this is the speed and that's the force! Makes sense!"

"See? physics can be fun." Adrien giggled.

"I wouldn't call it fun, but thanks Adrien, you really helped me a lot." Marinette smiled at him until the professor saw them and told them to work in silence.

During lunch, Marinette was quiet and pensive, looking through the window, completely lost in thought. Alya noticed this and said:

"Marinette, can you come with me to the bathroom?" Marinette was startled for a moment but stood up to accompany Alya anyways.

"Why do girls go to the bathroom together?" Nino asked Adrien, who had been seating next to Marinette all along. Adrien shrugged with a half-smile.

"That's the world's biggest mystery."

Of course, there was no mystery involved, but Alya wanted to talk to Marinette in private, plus the girl's bathroom is supposed to be a social club.

"Spill it Marinette," Alya said once they reached the bathroom, making sure there was nobody in the stalls to hear their conversation.

"Spill what?"

"You know what I'm talking about!" She shouted, but Marinette looked at her with a blank expression. "Adrien was sitting next to you during lunch and you didn't even notice."

"Oh that... what about it?" Marinette looked at herself in the mirror, and took a colored Chapstick from her purse and applied some to her lips.

"What do you mean? You've had a ginormous crush on Adrien for two years, and now you're acting as if nothing is happening!"

"Well, nothing is happening Alya," Marinette snapped. "I've tried everything to get close to Adrien, but nothing happens! I'm not even able to speak properly to him... he's too good for me... plus, I think he likes someone else." Marinette finished, but she didn't look sad, instead, she looked determined.

"Are you telling me that you decided to move on from Adrien out of nowhere?"

"Not out of nowhere..." Marinette sighed, "I've been thinking about it for a while now... I feel like I went over the top since the beginning and now... it feels as if my feelings for him are just going downhill."

"Okay, but tell me the truth," Alya said putting her hand on her forehead, still a little bit shocked by Marinette's declaration. "Is there someone else?" she blushed a little but tried to control it and pretty much succeeded.

"Does there have to be someone else? I just noticed that my crush on Adrien wasn't taking me anywhere."

"It's Luka, isn't it?" Alya asked casually.

"I..." Marinette tried to say, but then the bell rang and it was time to go back to class. "We'll talk later, I have English now." They left the bathroom together, but Marinette didn't say anything else.

After class, Alya caught up to her before Marinette had time to leave.

"Don't think you'll escape from our conversation that easily young lady, you'll have to tell me sooner or later."

"Adrien!" came a voice from behind them. Marinette turned around and noticed that it was Kagami, she was heading to where Adrien was standing talking to Nino a few feet away. Adrien smiled at her and hugged her. She smiled back at him and started talking in a lower voice so that Alya and Marinette couldn't make out their words, but both of them seemed happy.

"Adrien seems to like Kagami," Marinette said, still looking back at Adrien, but then she turned to face Alya. "I can't compete with her, she's great! And Adrien is happy around her. Who am I to get between them?"

"Mari, you're a great girl as well! And Adrien is a jerk for not noticing that." Alya said angrily.

"He's not a jerk, I guess we're just not meant to be..."

"Well, if you're really gonna do this, there's something you must know," Alya softened her expression and put a hand on Marinette's left shoulder. "you're worth more than you can even imagine, and when the right person comes, he's going to notice that, you'll be able to be yourself with him and you won't need to ever pretend to be someone you're not or change who you are in order to make him like you."

"Thanks, Alya, it means a lot." Marinette smiled. Alya leaned in and hugged Marinette. While they were still embracing, Marinette saw something that disturbed her. Behind Alya was a man, wearing a black skintight suit, he was also wearing a knee-length black jacket with a hoodie, in his face he had a mask that covered his eyes, giving him an even darker appearance. In his hand, he was carrying something like a pipe. "Alya, look!" Alya turned in time to see it shoot a small and round white projectile with the pipe; as soon as it hit Alya's nose she froze, completely unable to move. When she saw this, Marinette tried to run away but a projectile got her first, and everything went black.

o0o

"Marinette! Wake up!" came a distorted voice from a person in front of her, Marinette shook her head and tried to focus on the person standing in front of her.

"Alba?" Marinette said with a raspy voice, touching her forehead in an effort to stop everything from spinning around. "What happened?"

"There's an Akuma, it's Mr. LeBeau or as he calls himself, Drillmaster," I said in a rush with a worried expression. "The Akuma is in the blowpipe and he uses it to spit paper projectiles that put people in some sort of deep sleep or coma or whatever, the thing is, I was able to wake you up by pulling it off, here." I gave Marinette the small paper ball that apparently had put her into a coma.

"How long have I been unconscious?" She asked hastily

"Only a few minutes. Chat Noir already went to confront Drillmaster." Marinette nodded and ran off to transform, but I stayed behind pulling off paper projectiles from the people around me and telling them to run off.

Now transformed, Ladybug took her yo-yo and called Chat Noir.

"Ah, she lives!" he said sarcastically through the video call.

"I'm sorry chaton, I was delayed... Where are you?"

"The roof of the Lycée Carnot*." Ladybug looked up to see that Chat was, in fact, fighting Drillmaster almost on top of where she was standing. Suddenly the image froze, but she could still hear the laugh of the villain in the background, which meant the image wasn't the one the froze.

Ladybug used her yo-yo to hop to the ceiling where she found a frozen Chat Noir and Drillmaster reaching closer to him no doubt to get his miraculous. Ladybug threw her yo-yo at him hitting him in the hand and making him back away, and with that same motion, she used her yo-yo to catch Chat Noir and pull him closer to her on the edge of the building. Once they were near, she saw that there was a small white projectile in Chat's left shoulder. She peeled it off and Chat stirred immediately.

"M'Lady?" he said drowsily, she was so happy to see him well that she threw herself to his arms without thinking fast enough and because of this momentary distraction she got shot again, this time on her leg, but Chat peeled off the projectile almost as soon as it landed and she was awake and alert again.

"Let's get this over with." Chat said determinedly and took his baton out to dodge the projectiles he threw at them.

"Children, it's time for me to give you a lesson on respect!" Drillmaster exclaimed as they fought him, but Ladybug's mind was still somewhere else and this caused her to lose her balance getting herself shot again.

"Are you alright M'Lady?" Said Chat as he pulled off the projectile from her cheek with his thumb.

"I will be when we're done with this Akuma. Lucky Charm!" She yelled, and the ladybugs in her yo-yo produced a small red and black flower hairpin.

"What are you gonna do with that? Give him an updo?" Chat asked protecting her by dodging paper projectiles with his baton.

"I've seen this somewhere..." And then she remembered. She looked down from the roof and saw Alba who was still freeing some victims of the projectiles, her Ladybug's vision made her see that Alba was wearing a hairpin with a flower that looked exactly like the one the Lucky Charm had created, with the same ladybug vision she also saw Chat as something she was supposed to use. "Chat, the ceiling, do your thing!" She said jumping from the roof.

"At your service My Lady. Cataclysm!" He screamed and broke the ceiling with the touch of his hand, this made the villain fall to the classroom below it, but before he could stand up from the scums, Ladybug was entering through the window with Alba in her arms.

"Professor," she said in a sweet yet brave voice. Drillmaster was enraged at first, clearing the remaining dust from his black jacket, but as soon as he saw me, he froze, all his anger drew from his face, and he froze for a minute it was as if he had shot himself with a projectile. "You don't have to do this," I said as she got a step nearer to him. Ladybug and Chat Noir stepped aside not entirely understanding what was happening.

"I have to! Or else the students won't respect me!" He shout, although he was angry, his tone was more like one regret as if he was somewhat ashamed of his behavior

"There are better ways to gain their respect," I said getting closer yet. "You're a great teacher!" Now I was right in front of him. Chat was now looking at the scene gaping like a fool, Ladybug was surprised as well, yes, her miraculous had told her to use me, but she wasn't expecting something like this.

"I have to..." I touched his hand and he didn't back away, he couldn't he was frozen by the sight of me, and I was looking at him in the eye. Using this distraction, I took the blowpipe from his hand.

"You don't!" I held the weapon in my two hands and used all my strength to break it before he even reacted to what had happened. Without losing time Ladybug shook off her confusion and captured the Akuma, purifying it. She also took the flower which was still in her hands and used it to restore all of the things that had been broken or damaged.

Meanwhile, Drillmaster was now prostrated on the floor and now I was kneeling right next to him when the effect of the Akuma wore off completely. The broken blowpipe turned out to be a single yellow and white straw.

"Professor LeBeau?" I said shyly.

"Miss Thomas?" He looked at me confused and then looked at the heroes that were standing next to him. "Ladybug? Chat Noir? What happened? Don't tell me I was..." All of us nodded quietly at the same time, he looked down to his shaky hands as though they were dirty. "I didn't hurt any of you, did I?" He looked especially at me with big blue sparkly eyes, his sweaty black curly hair was sticking to his forehead, but he still looked handsome.

"You didn't and even if you had, it's not your fault." Ladybug said making Mr. LeBeau look up at her.

"She's right, Hawk Moth took advantage of a moment of weakness, he's the monster, he's the one that should be ashamed of himself." Chat said confidently.

"Just so you know," I said, making him look at me again "You are a great teacher, and students will learn to respect you with time." He smiled at me but did nothing afterward.

"I'll take Alba with me," Ladybug said. "can you take care of Mr. LeBeau, _chaton_?" She said looking at him, now she was a little flustered, but he didn't notice and limited his answer to a nod. I stood up to go with Ladybug who carried me and flung out of the window.

o0o

"What on earth was that?!" Marinette asked as they reached a secluded corner of the school, where she transformed back into Marinette.

"Listen, Mari, as much as I want to explain everything, I know that Chat will also want to know all the details and I honestly refuse to tell the story twice so, come to patrol tonight and all shall be revealed," I said without looking at Marinette in the eye for fear of losing my cool.

"So, there is a story to tell," Marinette said crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow.

"There's always a story to tell dear," I answered nonchalantly. "Just not now... However, I would like to know the story behind your distractions today, how many times did you get shot at today?"

"three..." Marinette answered looking down.

"three! That's way too much for a superhero! You're lucky the effect of the projectiles was reversible, or else Hawk Moth would have your miraculous by now! Spill, what's your deal?"

"There's no..."

"There's always a story, Marinette" I repeated. "Whether you want to talk about it or not. But know this, I've seen Chat Noir's face on your thoughts the whole day." Marinette was taken aback, but she should have known by now. Alba knows, Alba always knows.

"He's just a friend, and that's the way it should stay," Marinette answered quickly her face growing hotter every moment but her eyes were looking sparkly and red.

"Correct, that's the way it should stay, but it's not the way you want it to be, am I right?" Marinette's eyes glittered but it wasn't out of happiness.

"I..." Marinette was about to deny it, but I looked at her with an accusing raised an eyebrow, she knows better than to lie to me, even without my powers I just know when a person is lying. "I have no choice than telling you the truth, do I?" I nodded. "If you must know... I must be going mad! I... I can't live without him... The days he doesn't come to my house are like a nightmare, 'cause I wait for him every night, even against my better judgment, and if he doesn't come I feel lost! Look, I know this is madness! I can't ever hope to be with him, I know it's dangerous! Hawk Moth could use it against us, and we could lose our miraculouses."

"Not to mention that you would be distracted, as you were today." Marinette shrugged.

"I want him only for me... Sometimes I wish..." Marinette stopped herself.

"just say it." I encouraged her.

"I wish I could tell him... tell him who I am, everything would be so easy... No matter how close we are I feel like there's always something drawing us apart!"

"Something like what?" Marinette sighed, I knew I was pushing her hard to talk about her feelings and I also knew she didn't like to feel pressured by anyone, but she needed it this time. Just this time, I'm gonna push a little harder.

"I... I feel like... it's the fact that I have to keep this... huge secret from him..." She gestured with her hands. "I mean, I know he's keeping a secret from me, but that's just the thing, he doesn't know that I'm keeping a secret for him and that just makes me feel guilty, It's like I'll never be able to be fully honest with him. It's like there's always going to some sort of wall between us."

_**But why!** _

_**I dare not say anything to him.** _

_**I want him only for me,** _

_**his light, his smile,** _

_**crossing for one night,** _

_**this wall between us!** _


	5. Chapter 5

_**Chapter 5** _

_**Mais pourtant!** _

_**Lorsque je pense à elle** _

_**Je me sens infidèle** _

_**je veux fuir dans nuit** _

_**Pour voir ma coccinelle** _

_**J'ai la cœur en duel.** _

"Why did you call us here?" Chat asked as he reached the top of the Eiffel Tower, where Ladybug and Sirena were sitting waiting for him while eating a bag of popcorn that I bought while I waited for Ladybug to arrive.

"Finally, you show up!" Playfully said Ladybug.

"Look who is talking little miss 'I was delayed.'" Chat answered back with a smug.

"Yes, yes, we're terrible time managers, I think we're clear on that," I intervened. "But I didn't call you in here to decide who's the worst, I called you because I feel like both of you deserve an explanation of what happened today."

"You mean your little romance with your professor?" Chat asked nonchalantly.

"It's not..." I took a deep breath, stopping myself from saying anything else. "Listen, I'm just gonna tell you my version of the events. Get comfy, it's a long story." Ladybug and Chat Noir obeyed and reclined their backs to the Eiffel Tower

"Pass me the popcorn, I have the feeling this is gonna be good." Chat said motioning to Ladybug, who shared some of it with him. I cleared my throat and began to narrate my story.

"It all started a few weeks ago, I hadn't slept at all and I knew the next night was going to be the same, so I decided to stay at the school library to work on some projects and whatnot. I thought I was alone so I started humming the song that was playing in my earbuds, the hums turned into words and soon I was actually singing, with my earbuds on, so you can imagine, I was actually screaming. Suddenly somebody tapped on my shoulder and I turned to see that it was professor LeBeau, he looked at me with a half-frown half-smile. I swear I thought he was going to scold me, so I spoke first.

'I'm sorry Mr. LeBeau, I didn't...'

'Is that _un año_ by _Sebastian Yatra_?' You can imagine my surprise at the fact that he knew about Latin music, so I simply nodded. 'I love that song, and you're singing it beautifully!'

'Thanks, professor, I'd love to be a singer someday, but I don't know if I can pull it off...' I answered him, and he said:

'I'm sure you could if you put your mind to it.' And the conversation just kinda flowed swiftly, and no, don't worry, nothing crazy happened after that, you dirty-minded people, but anyways.

We found each other by chance during lunch and after school, and if I have to be honest with you, I'm not mad about it at all, he's a very, very handsome man, and kind and smart and fun!

I found out he actually liked me last Friday, not because he told me, but because I was able to see it in his thoughts, we were in the library and the thought just popped up in his mind... I was a wreck after that so I ran away from the library without explaining myself or anything... In my haste, I took one of the books he had been reading, and only noticed when I arrived home.

I had some time to think about it over the weekend and I decided to talk to him, at least to return the book I took from him, which leads us to today.

Today I managed to leave from my last class early and went straight to his classroom. He was teaching an older class, and some of the students were making fun of him simply because they saw him as their equal they could mock and not a professor they should respect, I mean, he's only 22! Some students can be cruel... One of them was shooting paper projectiles with a straw, and he snatched it from him just before the bell rang.

When the students were heading out of the classroom and I was trying to work up some courage to go and talk to him, I saw the black butterfly coming in from a window akumatizing him. I saw his transformation first hand, and he saw that I saw, we looked at each other for a moment but in the end he passed me over and started to throw paper projectiles at people, but then I saw that the projectiles were still visible and I figured that if I peeled them off, their effect would wear off, and it did!

Fast forward a lil' bit, I was freeing people from their sleep prison when Ladybug came running towards me saying:

'Alba, I need your help!' and showed me the flower lucky charm she got and I immediately knew what I had to do, and the rest is history... I haven't talked to him after that... so you see, there's no scandalous romance."

"Yet," Chat Noir added with his mouth full of popcorn. "But by the looks of it, he likes you and you like him back!" Chat's words made my face feel hot.

"Of course not..." Now both of them looked at me with the same questioning eyebrow I give them when I question them. Same energy there... I don't like them now. "Ugh! It's no fun when you do it."

"Well, look at how the tables have turned!" Ladybug thought and looked at Chat with a smug look, he looked at her with the same expression even though he didn't hear what she was thinking.

"Fine! I might like him... but only a little!" I indicated a little bit with my fingers, but Chat got near to me and enlarged the gap between my fingers so that now it looked like a lot. "Whatever I feel doesn't matter! I'm 16! We couldn't be together even if we wanted too, he could literally go to jail! Plus, he's my teacher, imagine what a scandal! I can already see the headlined in the newspapers 'Teacher dates his freshman student.' No thank you, I'd much rather go unnoticed"

"I mean, it's just a matter of waiting until you graduate. Remember what people say, love is patient." Ladybug said with a sad smile as if her advice had talked to herself as well.

"Listen, whatever happens, there's something more urgent we need to do now and that's why I've brought you here today."

"I thought you said you called us to tell us the story," Chat questioned.

"That was just the bribe, but there's another reason... you see, now that Mr. LeBeau was akumatized, he is added to the list of people that I need to search... And I need the emotional support, I'm just not ready for it."

"Are you for real right now?"

"Very! Come on, I'll take you to his place, Ladybug, can you carry me?" Ladybug looked at me confused but then her expression changed to a slight smile when she remembered that I am not as swift and fast on land as I am on the water. I smiled at her and she came to where I was and took me by the waist. "That way!" I pointed West from the Eiffel Tower, she swung her yo-yo to the nearest building and in a matter of seconds, we were swinging from rooftop to rooftop with Chat Noir following swift.

We arrive at a complex building when I took my trident and plucked out the left prong which turned into something like a telescope and I used it to find Prof. LeBeau's apartment, when I did, I stopped using the telescope and looked absently at the brick wall in front of me.

"I'm not ready for this."

"What?!" Chat and Ladybug said at the same time.

"What do you mean? You've read thousands of people's minds looking for Hawk Moth." Ladybug said.

"Yeah, but what if it is him? What am I gonna do? It'll hurt too much..."

"Don't worry about it," Chat continued. "Chances of him being Hawk Moth are slim since you saw him get akumatized."

"Well, that's worse! If he's not Hawk Moth then I'll be meddling into his mind without permission and..."

"Oh, come on!" Chat Noir interrupted. "That's never stopped you before! Now do what you need to do or else we'll never know for sure." I took a deep breath and took my telescope again.

"Here goes nothing..." Ladybug and Chat Noir were first hand witnessed of the flow in my emotions, first I was stiff but then my muscles relaxed, and they looked at each other, knowing already that he wasn't the one we were looking for. "It's not him..." I couldn't help a tear of relief coming down from my eye.

"Then why are you crying?" Chat asked.

"He was thinking about me..." I answered absently. When Ladybug and Chat Noir put up a face of disgust I continued. "Nothing like what you're thinking, He's kind and respectful, he was thinking about how sorry he was that I had to see him get akumatized and things like that. There's not a trace of wickedness in his heart and not a sign that he could be Hack Moth or that he could know who he is."

"I guess we're clear then, if it's alright for you there's somewhere else I gotta go to." Ladybug said in a haste, I knew she was planning on going home to wait for Chat Noir, but I also knew that Chat had no plans of going there tonight, so I had to intervene.

"Are you going somewhere as well, kitty?" I asked loud and clear enough that Ladybug could listen.

"Nowhere in particular, it's been a busy day, and I was hoping to catch some hours of sleep." After this, I turned to see Ladybug shaking my head, and she understood the silent message, Chat wasn't going to her place tonight. She looked downcast but headed out to her place nonetheless, as if hoping that he would change his mind and come visit her anyways.

If only she knew what I knew by looking at Adrien's mind. He had had a fencing tournament on Sunday, and right after that, a photoshoot and after that, a trip to England for a fashion show. He got back to Paris at 3 am, and he was absolutely destroyed. He managed to go to school like his usual cheerful self, but the Akuma had only added to his exhaustion. Now, all he wanted to do was catch some hours of sleep. I sat next to him with a sigh.

"Tired?" I asked when Ladybug was nothing but a red blur in the distance.

"You have no idea." He looked down to his feet, something was bothering him, and I knew just what it was. "Marinette was shot today... And I wasn't there to protect her..."

"You were there, just a few feet from where it happened."

"Which makes it all the worse! I could have protected her, but I didn't! instead, I ran like a coward."

"You didn't run like a coward, you ran like a hero, ready to transform and prevent the Akuma from shooting at anyone else."

"I know that, but I still feel guilty about it, and then Ladybug got shot too, twice!"

"Kitty, It's not all your fault, she could have been more careful." He sighed and said nothing otherwise. After a few moments, he stood up.

"I better go too..." Chat Noir took off before I could stop him. I had seen him deeply troubled, or maybe conflicted is a better word for it.

Chat followed the straight path to his home, but he wasn't counting that he'd had to pass by a certain bakery where a dark-haired girl was sitting in her balcony waiting for him to pass by.

When she saw him pass so close to her house without stopping, she called out his name.

"Chat Noir!" He, who hadn't noticed she was there, stopped his pace and looked around to see her leaning on the railing of her balcony, so much so that half of her body was hanging from the edge. She raised a hand to say hi to Chat Noir with a deep grin on her face, but the motion made her lose balance making her fall screaming 3 stories down.

As if in slow motion, Chat saw her starting to fall down, hearing her loud screams, this made him take action immediately, using his baton for an impulse to get faster to her. He stood on the sidewalk and caught before she was even close to the floor. How lucky was she that Chat, who was fast and swift on his feet was there to save her without hesitation. She looked at him with wide eyes but then hid her face in his neck, she wasn't scared now, she was terrified, she literally almost died just now! A fall like this was nothing to Ladybug, but right now she wasn't Ladybug, right now she was Marinette, a simple mortal. Chat was fast to act and using his baton he leaped back to Marinette's balcony.

"Are you alright?" He asked without letting go of her just yet.

"I almost... I just... I... what..." Chat Noir's grip around her tightened.

"You're safe now!" He assured her. "I promise I will always keep you safe." Marinette put her arms around his neck hugging him. At that moment, the door to Marinette's balcony flung open revealing a very terrified Tom and a pale Sabine following swift.

"Marinette! What on earth happened?" Tom asked turning red. Chat put Marinette down and she ran to her father and hugged him.

"I... I." She couldn't find the words so Chat answered for her.

"She slipped, but nothing major happened, she's perfectly fine." He assured them.

"You slipped from the railing?" Sabine gasped.

"I'm so clumsy... Chat saved me though." Tom examined her for bruises but founding none, he sighed

"You gotta be more careful Marinette if Chat Noir hadn't been there..." He looked down. She put a hand on his shoulder.

"But he was just in time to catch me, but don't worry dad, I promise I'll be more careful." She was more embarrassed than she was scared now, after all, she was Ladybug, a fall from a four-story house was nothing compared to the things she had endured, however, as Marinette, she had no powers to help protect her from a fall, she was in her vulnerable form, if she had hit the ground without her transformation, at the very least she would have gotten a fracture, or worse.

Sabine got near to where Chat was standing and held her hands to him, he took them and she said.

"Thank you Chat Noir." She pulled him down so that she could hug him properly. "You did well." She said in a soothing whisper while stroking his hair. At first, Chat was shocked at the gesture, but then he settled into the hug and started to enjoy it. He hadn't felt the warmth of a mother's embrace since his mother disappeared years ago! Oh, and how he missed it! Even though he was the superhero right now, the one with superpowers, Sabine's embrace made him feel safer than he had ever felt before. Soon, Marinette and Tom came near to join in the hug, and just for that small moment, Chat felt like the luckiest black cat in the world.

o0o

When he got home, Chat recalled the excitement of seeing Marinette wave at him from the distance, the terror of seeing her fall, the relief of having her safe in his arms, the warmth of Sabine's hug and the pain of having to say goodbye.

How was it that this girl was able to make him experiment so many emotions in such a short time? Just today he had seen her struggle in physics, get shot by an Akuma and fall to her imminent death. He had always liked Marinette, since the moment he met her he felt a need to make her like him. Surely, she was special, but right now he was feeling something different. Longing, he missed her, he wanted to be there to protect her from anything and anyone, but he also knew he couldn't do that.

"What's with the long face, kid? You just saved the girl; you should be happy." Plagg said nonchalantly flying to a plate of cheese next to Adrien's bed.

"I don't know Plagg, it's like all I can think about is her! Am I going crazy?" He plumped himself to his bed and sat there with his chin in his hands.

"You're not," Plagg answered with his mouth full of cheese. "You're in love." He said simply.

"What?" Adrien looked at him in disbelief.

"You heard it!"

"I'm not in love with Marinette, Plagg, I love Ladybug!"

"Then why is it that Marinette is the only one you talk about lately?" The black kwami crossed his arms and flew to look at Adrien in the eye. "Marinette this, Marinette that... I'm starting to believe that she's all you think about!"

"That's not true!" Adrien looked at Plagg in the eye and they stayed like that for a few moments, until Adrien looked to his hands and said. "I'm not ready to move on from Ladybug, I'm not sure if I'll ever be."

"But you also want to be with Marinette." He said making a suggestive gesture with his 'eyebrows'

"Wait, what?"

"Look at you kid, I knew you would turn around and take my advice to date both girls!" Plagg chuckled, he was somewhat enjoying seeing him suffer for two girls that were actually one in the same girl. This was his favorite part of his job.*

"I'm not dating both girls Plagg, in fact, I don't think I'm gonna date anyone for that matter! I can't think of Marinette that way, she's just a friend!"

"Are you telling me or telling you?"

"Plagg, just... eat your stinky cheese and let me be."

"That's what you should do! Stop worrying about those girls! Come and enjoy a bite of cheese with your friend Plagg."

"You're offering me some of your cheese?"

"You need it." Plagg flew near to Adrien and put a tiny hand on his shoulder.

"Camembert?"

"You know it!"

"You know what? give me the crackers." Plagg flew hurriedly and got the crackers, Adrien took a knife that was laying net to the plate of cheese, he cut a small piece and put it on the cracker. At first, Adrien was grossed out by the smell, but once he ate it, it wasn't that bad! So he took another bite.

"Yes, enjoy it, but you better buy me more in the morning," Plagg said eating from another chunk of cheese.

o0o

It was late at night, and Akuma was on the lose, Ladybug was by his side fighting fearlessly against Drillmaster who apparently had been akumatized again, but this was a much darker version of the Akuma. He took his immobilized victims and killed them violently, one of them was Marinette, when he saw the fear in chat's eyes at the sight of Marinette, he let out a dark laugh.

"So she is your friend, isn't she?" Drillmaster asked with an evil grin. As Ladybug ran to him to stop him, He shot her with one of his projectiles, but when he got near to her peel off the white paper ball, it was nowhere to be found. "It' just you and me Chat Noir, come and get your little friend!" Drillmaster took off running all around Paris and suddenly they were standing at the top of the Eiffel tower. Marinette had been tied to Drillmaster's blowpipe and he was dangling her precariously on the edge of the tower, waiting for Chat to take a step forward to let go of her. Marinette was frozen, and so was Ladybug, it was all up to him, but he was scared, because if something happened to Marinette... There was only one thing that Ladybug's miraculous couldn't fix. Death.

With an evil laugh, Drillmaster let go of Marinette, and as if in slow motion he saw her lifeless eyes look at him as she kept falling to her doom. But Chat was faster, he caught up to her and took her to a safe place. Once there he found the white projectile and pulled it off.

"Chat?" Marinette asked drowsily.

"Marinette!" He hugged her, tightly, they were kneeling on a rooftop and he let out a sob of relief on her shoulder. He then separated from her and looked at her in the eye, but then his her gaze drifted to his lips, when Chat noticed, he looked at her parted lips, suddenly they looked plump and... desirable. She looked back at him and slowly as if all else had banished from existence they closed the space between them with a tender kiss, at first it was shy, but then it got serious. A tear slipped through Chat's eye, he was so relieved to have Marinette safe again.

"Chat?" They stopped kissing abruptly as soon as the voice came, and Chat turned to see an enraged Ladybug getting closer and closer to where they were kneeling. "Are you cheating on me?" Now Chat was petrified, not even Drillmaster throwing Marinette off the Eiffel tower could compare to the fear caused by the sight of an enraged Ladybug. Chat looked at Marinette who was mad as well.

"Are you cheating on _me_?" And so both girls came up to him with fists clenched and brows furrowed, ready to chastise him for their behavior, he held his hands out in defeat but that didn't stop them, they were getting closer and closer until Chat panicked and screamed.

His scream was loud enough to wake him up to see an alarmed Plagg flying in front of his face.

"What, what is it? Did someone steal the cheese?"

"It was all a dream!" Adrien said putting his hands on his forehead.

"Did they steal the cheese in your dream?" Plagg asked wide-eyed.

"No... I think I had a nightmare..." Adrien looked around his bedroom to see the empty plate of cheese that stood on the side of his bed. "I'm never eating that stinky cheese again."

o0o

The first thing that Adrien thought when he saw Marinette that morning at school was: 'why is she so beautiful?' But then he remembered his dream, the face of disappointment that Ladybug had given him when she saw him kissing Marinette was enough to make him shake off any improper thought of her.

'But ah, Marinette, he could still feel her lips in his from his dream, and he could certainly smell her perfume from where he was sitting, she smelled like croissants.

But no! Marinette was just a friend! Ladybug was the owner of his devotions, she was the one that smelled like croissants!

But Marinette had a bakery, it was obvious she would smell like the most delicious bread in the world, not only that, but she could feed him croissants whenever he wanted.

No! but Ladybug was the most beautiful girl in Paris! But more important than that she was fearless, smart, brave, kind…

Do you know who's also like that? Marinette…'

"Mr. Agreste." Came Prof. LeBeau's voice pulling him out from his conflicted thoughts. Apparently, he had been calling out Adrien's name several times.

"Here!" he said standing up abruptly as an answer to the attendance, everybody started giggling. Ugh! It was like his first day of school all over again.

This was his train of thought during the entirety of the school period, his inner duel turned out to be more exhausting than the ones he had to actually fight in real life either as Chat Noir or as Adrien because at least then he knew who his opponent was, but now... He was fighting a powerful enemy one who he didn't know how to stop, himself.

When he got home, all he wanted to do was to sleep, it seemed as though sleep would take away all of his worries, but he knew it wasn't so, he was afraid that if he slept, he would have that awful nightmare again.

He didn't know what to do, he was lost and he didn't know who to tell, he didn't even want to see Marinette, 'cause he was afraid of what he could do.

Adrien went to sit in his piano ready to play a song, it started as a fun ragtime, but soon his emotions got tangled with the notes and even the cheerful melody became one of sorrow and despair. The major chords sounded dark and ominous and every note felt as if his own soul was being ragged.

He stopped playing as soon as he noticed and stood up abruptly. This wasn't what he wanted, he intended to use his music to relax, to escape from the torment of his mind! not make it more vivid and palpable, now even Plagg could feel Adrien's chaotic mind.

"Kid, relax! You can't live like this." Plagg motioned for him to seat in his coach. Adrien ignored him and kept pacing through his bedroom. "Kid, it was just a dream! It's not real! There's nothing to be worried about."

"It felt so real Plagg! I was cheating on Ladybug with Marinette!" Adrien threw his hands in the air and then started to nibble his fingers.

"So what? it's not like that's what's happening! You're not cheating on any of them! You're in the friendzone with both."

"I'm committed to a life in Ladybug's friend zone, but now Marinette is trying to make me leave it."

"Oh my gosh Adrien, You've friend-zoned Marinette so many times, why is it different now?"

"I don't know Plagg! it just is!" Adrien continued to nibble on his nails.

"Ok, that's it! You're freaking me out! This is what you're gonna do, you're gonna transform and you're gonna go for a ride, like now. If you don't say the words I'm gonna transform you myself!"

"Can you do that?"

"No Adrien! Just transform!" He actually screamed now. Adrien had never seen him this altered, and to be honest he wasn't about to disobey him, after all, he was still the kwami of destruction and Adrien had heard stories of some disasters he had caused.

"Plagg claws out!" Plagg was still crossing his arms and frowning when he was sucked into Adrien's ring, but as soon as the transformation was complete, Adrien felt a little better, and he knew what he wanted to do.

o0o

"Why did you call me here, _chaton_?" Ladybug asked seating on the top of the building looking down at l _e Jardin du Trocadéro._

"Oh nothing, it's just that... We don't do patrols you and I anymore, there's always Sirena."

"This is not another attempt of yours to ask me on a date, is it?" Ladybug said looking at him with an amused grin.

"Wha... what makes you say that, m'Lady?"

"You don't seem ready for a patrol," Ladybug noted because Chat Noir was actually laying down on the rooftop with his hands on the back of his head as if taking in the setting sun. He was finally able to relax, after a few runs around the city.

"I am, my lady, I was just waiting for you!" Chat sat up quickly.

"Okay, then, let's go." She motioned to get up, but he held her hand.

"Wait, the sun is about to set." Ladybug looked at him with big eyes and sat still. They sat like that, in comfortable silence for a few minutes, looking at that marvelous sunset before them. "This is all I needed." Chat Noir said with a sigh.

"Mhm?"

"I've had a couple of rough days and a nice chill with m'Lady is all I needed."

"Wanna talk about it?"

"Not really, All I want to do right now is forget about my worries and race you to The _Louvre_ ,"

"What?" Before she could make out his words he was already running towards the museum. So Ladybug took her yo-yo and started to swing from rooftop to rooftop. Of course, Chat had the advantage since he was faster, but Ladybug caught up because not only was she running, she was also swinging her yo-yo. They reached The _Louvre_ , almost at the same time, but Chat got there a split second earlier and he made sure to throw it in Ladybug's face.

"I won!" He did his victory dance while Ladybug rolled her eyes with an almost imperceptible half-smile.

"Yeah, yeah, you won this time, but only because you cheated!" That last word triggered a mixture of emotions inside of Chat's chest, he remembered the nightmare he had had, and it was as if a giant wave of cold water had crashed unto him. "Are you okay, Chaton? You look pale..." She got near to him motioning to touch his forehead, but he shook her off.

"It's nothing, but hey." He said recovering his cool quickly, "I'm no cheater!" Ladybug relaxed her worried expression

"Yes you are, you got off before I even had time to understand what was going on!"

"You should have known m'Lady! You know me already." She rolled her eyes again.

"So, you brought me out from my daily routine for a race?"

"Nope," She shook his head. "Patrol, get it straight!"

"Yeah, right! We both know that was an excuse! What's the real reason?" She looked at him with tender eyes while he scratched the back of his head and then shrugged.

"To be honest... I've had a lot in my mind lately... And all I wanted was to have a little bit of fun with my favorite Lady!" He said with a suggestive grin, which Ladybug shook off, still hiding a slight smile.

"Did it work?"

"The race? Totally! Thanks for that, m'Lady." He bowed, and this time she let out a small giggle covering her mouth with her hand.

"I better go _chaton_ , I'm glad I was able to help." She swung her yo-yo and left swinging from rooftop to rooftop. Chat Noir stared at her left, feeling better now. Ladybug was indeed the one true love of his life, there was no doubt in that.

**But yet!**

**When I think about her!**

**I feel unfaithful,**

**I want to run away in the night,**

**To see my Ladybug.**

**My heart is in a duel!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

_**Toi et moi** _

_**Si nous pouvions nous voir** _

_**Au-delà du miroir** _

_**Bas les masques pour un soir** _

_**Brisons de part en part** _

_**ce mur qui nous sépare** _

"So, Master, who's your OTP?" Alba asked Master Fu as he drank from his cup of tea. It was late in the afternoon and I decided to pay the old man a visit to the coffee shop where he was working now. It was a small and cozy little place, with wooden chairs which of course were empty now, since all the other costumers had left. The whole place was decorated in a vintage rustic way, with wooden tables, wooden high chairs, and a wooden bar. There was even a bossa-nova song playing in the background, and it was starting to rain outside. If it wasn't because I was with Master Fu, this would have been a very romantic atmosphere. I was seating on a high chair in front of the bar, and Master Fu was also seating on a high chair but on the other side of the bar.

"My what?" He asked not knowing what an OTP was

"OTP, you know, your one true pairing," I said matter-of-factly drinking from my hot cocoa, but he looked at me blinking still not understanding what I meant. "The one couple you ship the most?"

"Ah! I know that one!" He exclaimed. "I ship me and Marianne!" He said with a satisfied smile

"That's not how it works Master," I giggled. "You can't ship yourself! I mean from the love square; do you even ship the love square?"

"Of course I ship the love square! I created the love square!"

"Okay then, are you team Adrinette, LadyNoir, Ladrien or MariChat?" He thought about it for a second.

"Multispik!" He exclaimed.

"No, don't go there! That's the same as Adrinette!"

"It is not, because Marinette does not know that Adrien knows that she's Multimouse, and Adrien does not know that Marinette knows that he is Aspik."

"True," I granted him. "but still, they don't count 'cause they're probably never gonna use those miraculouses again! Choose from the original love square, or even... I mean... I guess you could also choose Lukanette and Adrigami." Master Fu made a face of disgust.

"If they wish to, they can be with other people for a while, I don't mind, but if there's something I'm sure of, it's that those relationships are not gonna last, because Adrien and Marinette are soulmates, they were made for each other, and thus they're always gonna find their way back together."

"So... then you ship Adrinette?"

"I ship the love square, my dear." He said taking a sip from his tea.

"Okay well, which team do you think is gonna break the love square and turn them into a couple?"

"LadyNoir," He answered without thinking it twice. "Or perhaps even MariChat."

"So, no Ladrien or Adrinette?"

"I ship those as well. However, they're not going to break the love square."

"What do you mean? Why not?"

"You see, Ladrien has too many expectations, illusions, and fantasies. Even though they are both wearing their strong suits there, However, in a way, they're both wearing masks because it is not the entirety of who they are. If they were to be together they're going to be disappointed quickly, because if they start off thinking that the other is perfect... Well, a relationship can not survive that way, they need to know and love the weaker and flawed sides of each other before they make any decision, only then can they truly draw force from their love."

"Okay... so, what about Adrinette?"

"Oh, that's just not going to happen, Marinette is incapable of standing up to show her feelings for Adrien and he only sees her as a friend. Plus, Marinette needs to chill, as you young ones say. Her crush on Adrien is becoming too much of an obsession for my liking."

"You'd be surprised Master, she says she's already over Adrien." He took a sip of his tea before setting his cup on the table.

"I admit I am not surprised, for when you start on the top of the mountain you can only go downhill." He said looking at his tea again.

"Okay so, no Ladrien and no Adrinette, that leaves us with MariChat and LadyNoir."

"LadyNoir. If I had to choose between the two, I'd choose LadyNoir."

"Okay, now I want to hear your reasoning."

"You see, even after they finish school or if Adrien and Marinette just stop talking to each other, they are always going to be tied together by the sense of duty of their alter egos, they are always going to find their way back to each other. Plus, as opposed to Marinette's crush on Adrien, I believe Chat actually loves Ladybug, as he has proved it many times by sacrificing himself for her good. Sure, he still needs to mature a lot, but I believe he's on the right track."

"Hm," I said grabbing my chin between my fingers. "Well, I think MariChat is gonna break it, mainly because of what you said, they're the imperfect and humanly flawed part of the other, plus at first they weren't fond of each other and now they're friends! So, if you start from the bottom of a mountain you can only go up!"

"Good reasoning, however, MariChat depends on Chat going after Marinette or at least going to visit her, they would never see each other if he suddenly stopped."

"True, but they're such great friends! and Marinette is already falling for him."

"Although I do respect your opinion, I am going to stay with LadyNoir."

"Wanna bet?"

"A guardian should never engage in such kind of activities, especially not at the expense of the holders he or she chose." He said setting his cup of tea aside.

"Hm," I said having drunk a sip of my hot cocoa, "Come on! It's just for fun! 10 Euros to MariChat."

"10 €? You don't seem to have a lot of faith on your ship! I bet you 20 € on LadyNoir!"

"Well well well, master, for a guardian that isn't allowed to gamble you sure know how to bargain! Alright then 20 €, but only after they reveal their identities."

"Agreed!" They competitively shook hands just before a customer entered the store and Master had to go to tend to him.

o0o

A few days passed, and Marinette was sitting on her desk apparently thinking about something. "I've decided Tikki, I'm gonna tell him!" Marinette said standing up confidently to get ready for the day get dressed for the day.

"You're gonna tell Adrien you're in love with him?" Tikki asked hopefully clasping her hands together.

"What? No! Remember! We've established that Adrien belongs to Kagami!" Marinette said frustrated at the red kwami for bringing up her late crush.

"I don't think Adrien belongs to anyone, Marinette. He's a person! People don't belong to other people." Marinette thought about it for a moment.

"Well, still! Kagami is my friend, and she likes Adrien a lot, and he likes her too, so no, I'm not talking about Adrien."

"Then... you don't mean..."

"I'm telling Chat Noir who I am."

"What?! No, Marinette, you can't do that! Your identity must remain a secret!"

"It will, I trust Chat Noir, he'll understand, besides, I think it is more dangerous to have him come to my place every other day! What if Hawk Moth sees him! If we knew our identities we wouldn't have to hide anymore, we could hang out like normal friends!"

"Friends?" Tikki looked at her quizzically.

"Yes, friends! Remember he has a crush on Ladybug!"

" _You_ are Ladybug! If you tell him who you are it means he'll have a crush on _you_!" Marinette looked shocked for a second. "Don't tell me you didn't think about that." Marinette shook her head.

"I was so worried thinking about how distressed he seemed the other day... and how easy life would be if he knew that I totally forgot that he actually has a crush on me."

"I thought you liked him."

"I do! But to think I could be so close to knowing who he is... It's giving me the chills." Tikki shook her head looking down.

"Listen Marinette, whatever you do you have to be extra sure about it and be ready to face the consequences."

"I'm thinking with my head Tikki, that's what heroes do!"

"Yes, but be careful, sometimes the heart likes to disguise itself as the head."

o0o

Meanwhile in Adrien's bedroom.

"Life would be so easy if I knew who she was, Plagg" Adrien sighed stumbling back to his bed.

"I suppose you're talking about Ladybug," Plagg answered while he ate a big chunk of cheese.

"No, I'm talking about Mayura, of course I'm talking about Ladybug!"

"Although," Plagg said licking his fingers. "Life would be easier if we knew who Mayura is." He said not really thinking about her.

"No, I mean yeah, but what I'm saying is, what if I tell Ladybug who I am?"

"What?! Why?! She'll never let you do it, she's too 'responsible' and 'focus on the job' type of chick."

"Well, I just won't ask her, I'll just tell her, It's my identity, I can do whatever I want with it!"

"Yeah, well, the least you could do is try to protect it!"

"Since when do you care?"

"Look, kid, this is a huge step, plus there's no guarantee that she'll tell you who she is!"

"At least she'll know who I am, that's all that matters." Plagg sighed in defeat.

"Ugh! Fine, but whatever you do, don't come to me crying later."

o0o

During class that day, both Adrien's and Marinette's thoughts were all over the place thinking about ideas and places and scenery and weddings and possible outcomes of what would be their big reveal. Of course, none of them knew what the other one was planning, but I did.

I knew, and it was driving me crazy! I wanted to make it stop, I wanted not to be able to listen to their thoughts, but I couldn't, Mishell didn't teach me that part.

Their thoughts were beautiful, yes! And I was excited for them, I want them to be together even if it meant losing 20 €, but all this mental ramble was so intense that I was starting to lose control of my own thoughts.

"Are you feeling alright Ms. Thomas?" Professor LeBeau asked with a worried and gentle expression as he walked next to where I was seating, apparently, I had been seating with my hands on my ears, and I was also shaking.

"Ye... Yeah, I mean, now... I... can I use the restroom?" I said still shaking, he looked at me with the same worried expression which then softened to a sad smile.

"Of course, do you need someone to go with you?"

"I'm fine, thank you." I smiled at him slightly and slid out of my seat without looking back.

I reached the restroom and checked to see if there was anyone around. It was deserted.

I splashed my face with cold water and looked at my pale face in the mirror. But suddenly, A bluish-white light appeared in it, and I turned around to see a woman coming out from it. She had red spiky hair and several earrings in her ears. She was wearing a mask and a spandex suit, blue and white, with pockets on her abdomen.

"Alba!" She gasped, and I stepped back in terror.

"Who are you? And how do you know my name?"

"Ugh, I forgot, you don't know me yet, My name is Bunix, and I come from..."

"The future! Alix?"

"My, my, for a person so young, it's impressive that you're even able to use your powers without transforming!" She smiled. "You're right by the way, Sirena!"

"No, but, why are you here? And, be careful what you think about, I still don't know how to not read other people's thoughts. And honestly I don't want to spoil the future."

"Easy peasy, just look at me through the mirror, if you don't look at me directly you won't see my thoughts." I nodded and obeyed, turning my back on her and facing her through the mirror. "I came to warn you, something is about to happen today that could alter the course of history if you don't do something about it."

"Me? Why me? Is... is about Hawk Moth?" I said looking at her urgent expression.

"Worse, It's about Ladybug and Chat Noir!" She clenched her fists and looked at me through the glass.

"Oh, you mean them trying to reveal their identities?"

"Oh, so, you know already?"

"Of course, that's all they've been thinking about the whole day! Thanks to them I now have a headache."

"Well, you gotta stop it!"

"Why? What's wrong with that? They're in love with each other! Don't they deserve a drop of happiness in their messy lives?"

"Yes! Yes they do, they deserve all the happiness in the world, but... For everything there's a season, remember?" She smiled sadly at me, as if remembering something, but the mirror was doing its job and I couldn't see what she was thinking about.

"So you're saying it's not time for them to be together yet?"

"That'll be correct."

"But they will be together, won't they?"

"Well, they are soulmates."

"Okay, but I don't get it, why do I have to stop it from happening?"

"Because if you don't the world is going to end, literally!"

"You're saying the world is going to end because two teenagers fell in love?"

"You don't understand, they're invaluable, they're the holders of the most powerful miraculous, if the timing is wrong it could lead to chaos! And right now, the timing _is_ wrong, very wrong!" I looked at her with tired eyes, there was so much information in my brain today, I started to feel dizzy. "This love they share, it can be the greatest strength of their most powerful weakness, but for either of them _time_ is of the essential..." Before Bunix could finish talking, the door of the bathroom flung open.

Alix looked at us with big eyes and mouth wide open, she shook her head after a moment and said.

"Professor LeBeau send me because you were taking too long...?"

"Oh yes!" Bunix exclaimed. "I remember this! And if I remember correctly then you're about to..." Before she could finish talking, I couldn't hold the spinning of my head any longer, so I ran to the nearest toilet and emptied my stomach in it. "Throw up." She finished with a face of disgust. Still, Alix came to me and held my hair while massaging circles in my back.

"There, there. What are you doing here, old me?" She addressed her older self.

"My job, making sure the time and space continuum remain intact! And because I can remember all of this, it means I made the right decision by coming here! I know you'll do what it takes, Alba. I better go now, my message was delivered, I'll come to you if anything goes wrong, if you don't hear from me again, then it means everything is alright." As soon as she said that, I felt the light of her portal opening and she was no longer in the bathroom with us.

"What was that all about?" Alix asked sitting on the bathroom floor while I grabbed a piece of paper to clean my mouth.

"Can you keep a secret?" She nodded.

"You're not pregnant, are you?"

"Ha! Heavens no! but I've been a little lightheaded. With a ton of thoughts in my head." I looked at my anklet and then I looked at Alix. "Have you seen the future you before?"

"I think this is like the second time, yeah!"

"So, you know you become a miraculous holder in the future, right?"

"That's pretty obvious now, isn't it?" She shrugged.

"Well, if you're gonna be the holder of the rabbit miraculous, and the kwami of time, you'll have to deal with a lot of information you won't be able to share, so you might as well be getting some practice."

"What do you mean, and how do you know so much about my miraculous."

"Because," I said weakly. "I'm a miraculous holder as well... fish miraculous, holder of the kwami of the mind."

"You what now?!"

"Listen, whatever I tell you, you must keep it a secret. Remember old you said you have to become as cool as her to get your miraculous? Well, this is the first step, get ready, 'cause there are a few more to go. Consider it a practice run."

o0o

That evening, when the sun was setting and the world was busy with people getting home to get to their loved ones, two teenagers had made up their minds, they wanted to be together, they wanted to be honest, to finally be able to be themselves, to be free, to see each other behind their masks.

But neither knew what the other was planning, they were ready for each other, or so they thought.

Chat Noir was waiting for his Lady under the bridge of the Seine River, he had planned and rehearsed his speech, how he longed to see her and tell her, to free himself from the burden that his secret had become.

He was sitting by the edge of the river when he heard the noise of steps coming his way.

"My Lady," he stood up to kiss her hand, and she didn't try to stop him this time.

"Did I make you wait for long?" She looking away from him and into the river, taking a seat on the edge.

"I would wait a lifetime for you, my Lady," He answered her with a fluttering grin, why were his palms sweating? More to prevent his legs from trembling than for anything else, Chat took a sit next to Ladybug.

Ladybug was shifting uncomfortably on her seat, looking at her reflection on the flowing waters of the river.

"Listen Chat..." "My Lady, I..." They spoke at the same time, so in sync they were.

"Let me go first, I..." She took a deep breath not daring to look at him in the eye. "I have to tell you something I should have told you a while ago."

"Wow, bugaboo, is everything alright? Don't tell me... are you married?!" He gasped and she giggled.

"No..." Her expression turned serious again. "But what I have to tell you... It's best if we go to a more... private place."

"Ladybug, you're scaring me, are you sure everything is okay?"

"I promise, let's... let's just go somewhere safer."

Chat stood up first and offered her a hand to stand up, and surprisingly, she took it! By the time she stood up, she was able to look straight into his green cat like eyes. She looked intently at them as if she was seeing a rare jewel for the first time, she wanted to get lost in them, she wanted to see them forever, but for some reason, she was eager to see them without the deformation that the mask caused.

Chat stared into her starry blue eyes as well, wondering where he had seen those beautiful blue eyes before. But he knew himself well, and he knew that if he didn't do something quick, he would do something he would regret. So, he cleared his throat and said,

"Are the sewers safe enough for you?" She bit her lips for a slip second thinking of his offer, and for some reason, this gesture made something in Chat's stomach jump, it was a funny feeling, but it was pleasant.

"That works," Her voice sounded gruff for a second, so she cleared her throat and repeated herself. "That works, let's go." She noticed that they were still holding hands, so she carefully let go of him and started heading to the sewers, feeling clumsy and dizzy.

They got to a metro station from where they kept pacing until they found their way to a place where only the janitors entered, but there were none by this time of the day.

"I think we're safe here," Chat said looking around. Ladybug was looking in the other direction, away from Chat when she started talking.

" _Chaton_ , you've always been a great friend to me, and even if I don't know a lot about you, I've decided that... I trust... I trust you, with my life, and I thought... Why not trust you with my other life as well?"

"Wait, what are you saying?" He walked closer to where she was standing, but she wasn't looking at him yet.

"What I'm saying is... Tikki!"

"Nononono, hold up, wait up!" He took her by her shoulder and turned her around to make him look at him in the eye. She stopped talking to look at him in the eye, suddenly breathless, while he was breathing faster than he probably ever had.

"There's no way you're telling me before I tell you." He said almost as a whisper meant only for her ears. She looked at him with big eyes, finding that she didn't know what to say. "Together?" He asked.

"Together." She nodded.

"Tikki, Spots off!" "Plagg, Claws in!" They said in unison and as the transformations fell, a thrill of emotions filled them, and they found that they couldn't open their eyes.

"Did you see yet?" He asked

"Did _you_?"

"I feel like I shouldn't,"

"You can _chaton_ , I want you to know!"

"At the count of three then, 1..."

"2..." she continued.

"3!" They said in unison and opened their eyes to see the most wonderful surprise they've ever seen.

"Marinette?" Adrien said, his words sounding like a smile. "Mari, is it really you?"

"Adrien? But it can't be... you..."

"Marinette!" He held her by her waist and spun her around. "Heavens, it is you! You don't know how terrible I've felt!"

"A...Adrien" She said giggling nervously, separating from his grip "But... you and... and Kagami! You like Kagami!"

"What? No! Kagami is just a friend," He said as if she had offended him even. "I've never looked at a girl the way I look at you my Lady, well, only Marinette, but it's the same you! You are you! My Lady, you've made me the happiest man alive this day!" She held her up and spun her around again this time not letting go of her, and she didn't push away this time either. She placed her hand on his cheek, forgetting that her feet weren't touching the floor anymore. She caressed his cheek with one hand and then with the other, noticing that without the mask, Chat's eyes looked more appealing, she never wanted to get away from them, but she found herself unable to hold his gaze for longer, since she found something more appealing when she looked a few inches down, she caressed his lips with her thumb before leaning just a bit in, he imitated her motion and locked their lips in a kiss. It seemed as if time had stopped, and suddenly a tear fell from Adrien's eye, and when they broke the shy kiss, he looked back at her.

"Is it really you?" He asked. She nodded smiling broadly.

"I promise it's me, kitty" He spun a third time and she giggled loudly, and right after he set her down putting his hands on her shoulders.

"And this is not a dream or... Or a crazy mind trick or a sentimonster or... or...?" She shook her head smiling ear to ear.

"I'm real! we're real!" He cupped her face between his hands and kissed her in the forehead and then on her cheek and then quickly on the lips again.

"Prove it, I'm not sure if I believe it! This is just too good to be true! Transform back!" She rolled her eyes but transformed back into Ladybug.

"Do you believe me now?" She said with a wide smile.

"Okay but, can you give me another kiss, then maybe I'll believe it," She pretended to be thinking for a second.

"Only if you can catch me!" She started running leaving Adrien awestruck, but he snapped out of it quickly, transformed and started running after her. She managed to get out of the metro and jump to the nearest building. They started running aimlessly around the city for what seemed like hours, stopping every so often for sightseeing, since it was night now, and the dim lights of the city made it all more romantical.

"So you've always had a crush on me?" He asked while they were still running.

"Yeah, but I gave up recently when I thought you were in love with Kagami!" She said without stopping. "Hey, you know what? You used to vent about your crush on me with me!"

"Gosh, that's embarrassing!"

"Not more embarrassing than knowing that you saw your pictures in my bedroom!"

"Ha! That's embarrassing! JK my Lady, I just thought you were a fan!"

"I bit more than a fan..." She said hiding behind a chimney.

"And wait, how come I saw you and Ladybug together once?"

"You mean Multimouse? Well, that was an illusion."

"Very smart princess, I must admit, but not smart enough to hide from me." He stopped by the chimney where she was hiding and came slowly to try to scare her. "Found ya!" He exclaimed and she was a bit startled.

"Or..." She came closer to him and crossed her arms around his neck, looking at him flirtatiously. "Maybe I wanted you to find me." She leaned in as he put his hands around her waist pulling her closer into the kiss.

"Get a room, you guys!" A voice came from behind them making them jump, ending the kiss.

"Sirena!" Ladybug said flustered.

"Well, this is new, when did this happen?" Sirena said looking at them from the floor/roof where she was seated with her legs crossed and her face on her hands.

"How long have you been there?" Chat Noir asked

"Since before you got here, some of us have work to do!" She said without leaving her previous position. "Now sit, tell me everything that happened!"

"I thought you read minds!"

"Ah kitty, you should know already, sometimes I want you to tell me." They looked at each other and sat in front of me with big broad smiles. They started narrating this night, one that they should never forget. They talked of how they revealed their identities, and how much they thanked me for making them wait for the right time, Chat Noir told Ladybug of how much I helped him once when he was troubled by his thoughts of Marinette as more than a friend.

"This is so beautiful you guys! It reminds me of a song!" I said regretfully.

"For real, will you sing it for us?" Ladybug asked excitedly.

"Well, it's more of a... chant" At the mention of the trigger word my powers activated and I saw how their eyes came out of focus as they fell into my enchantment, and as a tear slid through my eyes I started to sing.

_"A night you've had_

_You won't regret,_

_But I'm afraid you must forget._

_Like a dream, it felt,_

_A dream it must remain,_

_Because your time has not come yet._

_Let the glamour fall_

_Back into their minds_

_So that to your beds you can go back!_

_You'll come back."_

_**You and I!** _

_**If we could see each other** _

_**beyond the mirror,** _

_**not the masks for one night!** _

_**Let's break through** _

_**this wall between us!** _


	7. Chapter 7

_**Chapter 7** _

_**Je ne comprends pas ce que je veux** _

_**Je ne peux pas tomber amoureux** _

_**D'où vient ce sentiment mystérieux?** _

"So, you're positive that they don't remember anything," Alix asked as we were eating our lunch at the schoolyard.

"Oh, they remember, but kind of like a memory of a dream, fuzzy and distorted. All I'm worried about now is if it was the right choice," I sighed.

"Well, it's been more than a month now, and old me said that she'd come back in case you messed up." She continued, taking a bite of her sandwich.

"No, but that's the thing!" I exclaimed, "her absence either means that I succeeded or that I screwed up so bad that she's dead and can't come back to warn us."

"Are you saying you're responsible for my death?" She gasped.

"No! Or maybe yes..." She snickered uncomfortably.

"You know what? when I'm older, I'll refuse to come back just to mess with you for that comment."

"Very funny..." I replied crossing my arms. "I already feel terrible for what I did, why do you have to make it worse?"

"Listen, what's done is done, you can't go back in time. I on the other hand can!"

"No, you can't! You will, eventually, but right now you're just my annoying little friend." I giggled tapping her hair.

"Hey! I'm the same age as you! What you mean 'little friend?'"

"Girl, I'm a whole head taller than you."

"Well, the joke's on you! Everybody is at least a head taller than me, so you're not too tall yourself!" I shouldered her and then we started laughing. "What I don't understand is why old me wanted to separate Ladybug and Chat Noir! It's like everyone is rooting for them, even though yeah, I'm not much of a LadyNoir shipper, but I wouldn't get into their relationship without a reason."

"Okay, first of all, how dare you?" She started to giggle.

"I didn't know you were such a fan! Especially not after what you did..."

"Oh, don't go there! I only did it because you told me to! And I already want to kill myself because of it! I mean, they gave me a chance, they trusted me and I betrayed them!"

"You did what you had to do..."

"That doesn't change the fact that I'm a traitor, the end does not justify the means!" We stayed silent for a few moments.

"So... are you gonna tell me who Ladybug and Chat Noir are?" I could tell she was trying to lift the tension that had developed around us.

"For everything, there's a season..." I said looking absently at the empty track field in front of us.

"A what, now?"

"Oh well, it's an old saying, it means that there's a time for everything, you need to be patient I assure you, you'll know what you need to know in due time, but I can't share with you something I discovered using my powers, it's part of the M.R.C, remember?"

"Well... do you think I'll be able to recognize them if I see them?"

"Not a chance," I said absently eating one of my chips.

"What, why not?"

"It's called miraculous glamour!" Came Mishell's voice intervening for the first time in our conversation. Alix looked down to where she was seating eating from a bag of chips.

"Glamour?" Alix asked.

"It's a magical barrier that protects the holder's identity. Basically, people will see anything except how you really look, it can change the tone of your voice, the color of your eyes or even the color of your hair, but only in the eye of the beholder, it's only a slight change but you become completely unrecognizable. So, in a way, you can have a picture of Chat Noir and civilian Chat Noir in front of you and you still won't see them as the same person."

"Is all that necessary?" Alix asked annoyed.

"A hero's identity is their most important possession," I added.

"So there is no other way, I have to wait until I'm older to get my miraculous." She huffed, leaning back on the bench she was seating on.

"Don't look at it as waiting, consider it practicing and getting ready, after all, you're one of the lucky few getting a heads up." She still wasn't convinced so I bit my lip and added. "Besides, we're teenagers, we should be worried about boys, dances, parties! Not maintaining the time and space continuum! Enjoy your free time, and remember for everything there's a season."

"I guess you're right." Her mouth curved up slightly as I saw a thought pop up in her head which was too good to let it slide.

"I'm sure Max would appreciate it if you did," I sang, and she sat straight with her cheeks turning bright red.

"I... I don't know what you're talking about, what does Max have to do with any of this?"

"When I say the word 'boys,' his face was the only one to pop up in your brain."

"Hey! Get out of my head!"

"Sorry, it's involuntary... But I've known for a while, you're always looking at him in class."

"He's just a friend."

"That's what they say." I chimed as she covered her face in embarrassment.

"I just think he's kinda cool, what's wrong with that?" She added defiantly.

"Nothing little bean, I just like to make fun of you. And don't worry, your secret is safe with me, as I hope my secret is safe with you."

"Are you ever gonna tell them though?" She changed the subject out of the blue. "Ladybug and Chat Noir, about erasing their memories?"

"Who knows..." I added absently. "But come on, it's time to go to class, let's not add tardiness to our list of problems." I stood up from my seat cleaning the crumbs that had accumulated on my pants, yes, I wear pants now, because sadly, November is too cold to wear dresses.

"You mean problems for yourself, I am innocent of all charges. I've done nothing wrong."

"You're guilty by association, now let's go."

o0o

Days turned into weeks but for Adrien, the dream he had a while ago was still fresh in his mind even if it was fuzzy and confusing. In his dream, he and Ladybug revealed their identities to each other. He remembered seeing her face and loving every aspect of her, but he couldn't distinguish any features other than her dark hair. That dream made him feel happy and fulfilled, he remembered waking up with a smile, and even now after more than a month, the memory of it put a smile on his face.

He was so obvious about it that Nino noticed, catching him smiling dreamily during math class had become his thing.

"Pst." Nino elbowed him. "I suppose you're not smiling like that because of the equations." He said with a wide smile.

"Sorry, I was... thinking about something."

"Did you make any progress with you know who?" Nino asked in a whisper, making sure nobody heard.

"No... you know she's a superhero, a goddess, she doesn't have time for a simple mortal like me." Nino looked at him with a sympathetic expression.

"Dude, I think you should be looking for girls that you can talk to, like... Marinette, Kagami, or..."

"Alya?" Adrien taunted him.

"Yeah... I mean, no! You stay away from my Alya!" Nino grunted as if just remembering that Alya was _his_ girlfriend.

"No worries man, Alya is your girl, I would never look at her that way," Adrien said amusedly just as the bell rang.

"That's lunch! Thank God, I'm starving! Let's go." They stood up and started walking to the cafeteria. "Look, I know you really like Ladybug, but chances of you and her getting together are pretty slim, I really think you should date other girls, are you gonna spend your life waiting for a girl you can't ever have?" This statement made something stir up inside Adrien's stomach. With those simple words he managed to set a fire that made Adrien's blood boil, what did Nino know about Ladybug? Adrien clenched his teeth to prevent himself from saying anything he'd later regret.

"We don't choose who we fall in love with."

"True, but we can choose who we love," Nino said suddenly looking older than he was.

"What?"

"Being in love with someone is not the same as loving someone."

"What is that..." Adrien was about to ask an important question when a female voice interrupted him.

"Nino!" Alya waved at him from the entrance to the cafeteria, and of course, Nino went to say hi with a hug, Adrien followed him from a short distance since he didn't want to disturb the happy couple. "Babe, I have the biggest news, my sister just moved out of our place and rented an apartment on a big condo, isn't it fun!" Nino scratched his head.

"I guess... good for her... but what does it have to do with..."

"Well, she's having a boxing match tomorrow, in Germany! And she told me I could stay there for the weekend and have a few friends come over!" She beamed, "Mari said she'd come, and I would love it if you came too! But Mari said she refused to be the third wheel, so Adrien you're welcome to come if you want to as well."

"I'd love to Alya, but you know my father would never let me."

"Well then, just come sometime tomorrow, the idea is to get there tonight and spend the day there, but you don't have to, I mean, I'm sure Mari can deal with a little bit of third-wheeling." Alya snickered.

"No, I can't!" Came Marinette's voice among the crowd of students gathering in front of the cafeteria. "Unless you have been the third wheel you won't understand how awful it is to be freezing on a chair while you guys snuggle in a couch."

"That only happened once!" Alya interjected.

"Yeah, but still, it doesn't have to be Adrien to come but if you don't have someone else come over or I won't go."

"But Mari, if you don't come my sister won't let me have the apartment, she said and I quote, 'no boyfriends in my place.'"

"If I come, your boyfriend is still gonna be there," Mari argued crossing her arms.

"But it'll be more of a social gathering than a romantic night with my bae."

"Still, Alya!"

"Fine, how about we invite Luka?" At the mention of the name, Adrien's ear pricked up, as he listened intently to Marinette's answer.

"Yeah, Luka is pretty cool, and we'll have music all night!" Nino said.

"I'm a musician too," Adrien said under his breath.

"I guess you could invite him, it'll be fun," Marinette beamed and Alya looked at her with a suggestive stare. Adrien noticed this and his blood ran cold. But the thing that struck him the most was the fact that Marinette was blushing a little too, it was light, but she was blushing, she was actually blushing at Alya's suggestive comment! How dare she look this cute while thinking about another guy?

"You know what, Alya? I think I will go." Adrien spoke loud and proud, earning him all kinds of expressions from his friends.

"What!?" They all said in unison, Nino giving him a half-smile, Alya beaming with excitement, and Marinette gaping as if he had just told her the most shocking story.

"I thought your dad wouldn't let you go," Nino questioned.

"I'll just talk to him, it's just a night out with a few friends, I'm sure he wouldn't oppose."

o0o

"No." Gabriel Agreste commanded with his particularly icy voice.

"But father, it's just a small reunion with a couple friends."

"It's dangerous outside Adrien, and I don't want you running into any trouble," Gabriel replied turning his back at him.

"If only you knew..." He mumbled

"What was that?"

"Nothing, I'll just tell my friends I can't go." Gabriel nodded still not looking at Adrien.

Over the years Adrien had developed an ability to hide his emotions so that his father never knew what he was thinking about, this time especially, Adrien was disappointed that his father didn't let him go to the pajama party, but he didn't let it out, as far as his father knew it was just a silly reunion that meant nothing to him. Adrien had also learned that after every argument they had, his father would go into his room and try to make things up with him, this meant that Adrien couldn't simply transform into Chat Noir and escape using the window, he had to wait for the right moment, he had to be patient.

As he got into his bedroom, Adrien jumped into his bed and started scrolling on his phone.

"What are you doing? I thought we were going to escape and go to that party." Plagg questioned him.

"We are."

"But then, why are you just lying on your bed looking at... memes?"

"Be patient, Plagg! Patience will keep us out of trouble." Adrien stayed in his bed for a few moments, but as the minutes passed by, he decided to do something more productive and started to do some homework until his phone rang. It was a text, from Marinette.

{Are you coming?}

{Sure am}

{Are you sure?}

{Don't worry Mari, I just have a few things to deal with before I can meet you there}

{Well, hurry! We started a game of Monopoly and you know how Alya gets when she plays Monopoly} Adrien smiled at the screen of his phone.

{:s I'll be on my way} Adrien turned off the screen of his phone when he heard a knock on his door followed by the click of the doorknob when his father came inside the room.

"Adrien..." He said, almost surprised to see him there, seating on his desk, as if nothing had happened.

"Yes, father?"

"You may go to see your friends," Gabriel said with his emotionless demeanor, whereas Adrien was still staring at him in disbelief.

"Father?"

"You're a good boy Adrien, you obeyed me even though I forbade you from doing what you wanted, you deserve to spend the night with your friends, your bodyguard will escort you, and he'll be there to pick you up tomorrow morning."

"Father!" Adrien stood up and hugged his father, still not sure what to make of the situation.

"You have grown Adrien, I can't keep you locked in forever." Gabriel smiled slightly and then left the room.

"Well, that was unexpected," Plagg admitted coming out of his hiding place on Adrien's desk.

"See Plagg, patience will always be rewarded." Adrien started looking for something under his bed. "And now I'll get to enjoy a night out without worrying if my father will catch me!"

"Well... good for you, but don't forget to pack my..." Adrien interrupted him by pulling out a backpack that contained, among other things, a package of Plagg's favorite cheese; at the sight of it, Plagg started to drool.

"Let's go Plagg, Marinette is waiting for us."

"Marinette? Don't you mean your small but loyal group of friends?"

"It's all the same, come on!" Plagg was hesitant for a second but flew into his jacket nonetheless.

o0o

"What do you mean you want me to pay you the fee?! I'm your girlfriend, we should be splitting the money!" Adrien didn't even have to look at the number to know he was before the right apartment because only Alya could make a loud drama out of Monopoly.

"Alya, there are no couples in this game, in this game, you gotta pay your fee!"

"I'm not gonna pay you anything!" Adrien noticed that the door was unlocked and entered quietly.

"Girl, it's not like you guys are married, just pay him the fee and get on with it." Marinette's annoyed voice came from the small living room.

"He has four houses and a hotel! How am I supposed to pay for that?"

"Tough luck, now pony up!" At the sound of Adrien's laughter, all the three friends turned their heads to see him.

"Dude, you made it!" Nino stood up to greet him. "Come on, we saved the cat for you, and also a slice of pizza." Adrien sat next to Marinette and took the pack of money that she gave to him.

"This isn't fair though; you have the advantage since you've been playing for longer."

"Not really, we're all pretty much bankrupt"

"I'm not!" Marinette said.

"That's because you're cheating, stealing from the bank!" Alya fumed

"I am the bank!"

"Well, you're stealing from yourself." Alya crossed her arms and turned her head looking at the window, but out of nowhere she gasped and ran to the window, "Was that...?" Everybody ran after her in time to see not only Ladybug but also Chat Noir running horizontally on the side of the building, apparently chasing a guy dressed in white and blue.

"It must be some sort of Akuma," Nino said.

"Umm, Alya, I gotta use the bathroom," Marinette said and ran to the nearest bathroom. They followed her with their eyes but Alya turned her head back to the window only to find the heroes were gone now.

Adrien understood that something fishy was going on, so he put his hand on his stomach and flinched in pain. "Ugh Alya, I think I ate something bad; you don't happen to have another bathroom, do you?"

"Uhm, sure, there's one in the master bedroom." She pointed the way to a dark bedroom.

"Thanks!" He ran to the room and closed the door behind him.

"That can't be Chat Noir!" Plagg stated, coming out of his place inside Adrien's jacket.

"It's too bad! I just got here and now we have to leave... but, I can't let Ladybug chase villains with a copycat. Plagg claws out!" After transforming he opened the closest window and jumped through it. He started running the direction he saw the Copycat run with Ladybug, until he saw her, standing on the top of a building apparently looking for something.

"My Lady?" He said.

"Chat! Great, did you catch it?"

"Did I catch what?"

"The Akuma you were chasing with some fake me."

"Fake you? _You_ were chasing an Akuma with a copycat."

"No, I thought... wait, I wasn't chasing anybody and you weren't chasing anybody... does that mean..."

"There are three akumas on the loose?"

"Or something worse, come on, let's go see who these copycats are." They started running in every direction but they couldn't find them.

"We need high ground, my Lady," He took her by her waist as he pulled out his baton and extended it, he balanced his weight in it as he positioned Ladybug on his right leg. She, being used to the maneuver, pulled out her yo-yo and used it as a spyglass to look for the incomers.

"There! to our left, a fake Ladybug and a fake Chat Noir are cornering some guy dressed in white and blue!"

"Hold on my Lady," he moved his weight on the direction she had pointed. This gave them a great head start and they were standing in front of an alleyway in a matter of seconds, once there, they pulled out their weapons mimicking the incomer's menacing positions. But when they got closer, they noticed that although they looked like Ladybug and Chat Noir they were slightly different; for instance, this Ladybug's hair was longer, down to her waist and it was pulled back in a straight ponytail. Chat noir, on the other hand, had his hair pulled back completely.

"Stop there! Whoever you are!" Both the fake Ladybug and Chat Noir froze at the voice of Ladybug's command and turned around making their difference to the OGs cristal clear. Ladybug's eyes were of emerald green, and Chat Noir's were a shade of icy blue.

"Ladybug, Chat Noir, this is not what you think!" The blue-eyed chat said as he put his baton away.

"It might be, you don't know what they're thinking!" Came a second voice, and they noticed it was from the guy they were cornering, as he walked closer they were able to see who he was or at least what miraculous he was wearing, He looked similar to the fake Chat Noir but his hair was messy and fell on his face. "Hello there, My name is White Rabbit," He bowed

"That's not your name because that's not your miraculous, you stole it!" Came green-eyed Ladybug's accusing voice.

"As if you didn't steal yours!" He retorted.

"You gave us no choice!" the new Chat said, meanwhile, the OG Ladybug and Chat Noir looked at each other confused. But their worries were about to become bigger because much to their dismay, three miraculous started to beep and the three strangers looked at each other in horror. OG Ladybug and Chat had to cover their eyes because they light coming from the transformation was too strong. But then, they slowly opened their eyes.

Where once the green-eyed Ladybug was, stood a girl that looked like Marinette, but was very different at the same time, she was wearing white vans, high rise denim shorts, a pink crop tank top all coupled with a see-through white kimono that went down to her knees. Her hair was long and straight, and it wasn't in a ponytail anymore, it was loose with the two front pieces tied on the back.

The blue-eyed Chat looked exactly like Adrien, except for his eyes of course and few other things like his hair which was combed to the side, but it still flowed in a messy yet organized way. He wore black and white snickers, with black shorts and a white shirt rolled-up sleeves.

Now the other guy looked exactly like the fake Chat Noir, except for his clothes, he was wearing brown flip flops, red shorts and a gray t-shirt with blue and yellow stripes in the middle. His messy hair was covered by a backward beige cap.

Needless to say, they were underdressed for this late November weather.

"I told you not to use your cataclysm on that pen!" The girl told one of the boys.

"And I told you not to use your lucky charm!" He retorted.

"We needed it if we wanted to catch this idiot."

"Oh, well it would have been useful if you hadn't lost it!"

"Well, we wouldn't be in this mess if you hadn't stolen Bunix's miraculous." She pointed to the other boy.

"Hey, it's not like I forced you to steal those miraculous and follow me!" The three of them started to yell at each other completely ignoring Ladybug's and Chat Noir's presence, who still looked at each other trying to understand the scene that unfolded before their eyes.

"That's enough guys!" Ladybug said, but none of them listened, so Chat took his baton and expanded it towards them and used it push them apart, pining each one of them to a different side of the alleyway.

"You heard the Lady, that's enough." The children looked flushed but finally stopped yelling at each other.

"Thank you, now tell us, who are you? And what are you doing here?" Ladybug demanded.

"Oh um..." The girl started. "My name is Em... Emira! Yep that's my name"

"I'm Luke," The boy that had been Chat Noir spoke.

"Hugh," The other boy said simply with his arms crossed as if he didn't care about the outcome of the situation.

"You seem familiar, are you guys related?" Chat asked.

"No!" Luke and Emira answered flustered while Hugh said. "Yes!" making Luke and Emira look at him with a killer stare.

"I mean, it's pretty obvious that Luke and I are twins." Emira relaxed and nodded.

"Yeah, but I'm not, I'm in no way related to those two, whatsoever." She said with a stiff smile.

"But you seem very close," Chat added. "Are you two... like a couple?" He pointed at Luke and Emira with a smirk.

"What? No!" The three of them answered in unison with an expression of disgust.

"They're like big brothers to me," Emira said.

"Yeah, and she is like our little sister," Luke added.

"But we're definitely not related," Hugh added.

"Okay..." Ladybug answered to the strange responses they had given. "You're obviously not from around here." Ladybug noticed as they started to shiver a little. "Where, or should I say, when are you from?"

"I can answer that!" Came Fluff's (the kwami of time travel) cheerful voice. "We're from yesterday, no, I mean, tomorrow, which is also the day before the day after tomorrow."

"Fluff, I think you should let us explain." Plagg intervened, but this was another Plagg, "We come from the future. Now, Chat Noir, all this time traveling and stuff has made me really hungry, you don't happen to have some of that delicious cheese around, now, do you?"

"Plagg!" The Tikki from the future scolded him and looked at Ladybug. "There's not much I can tell you Ladybug, but all you should know is we do come from the future, and it was summer when we left which is why they are dressed as they are, now all we want to do is go back to our time, but we can't do that until Fluff is fed, can you please help us?"

"And feed us too! Not just Fluff!" Plagg added while the kids walked closer together to stay warm.

"What does Fluff like to eat?" Ladybug asked.

"Anything, but that cheese Plagg mentioned does sound nice!" Fluff added.

"Hey! It's mine!"

"There's enough for both of you Plagg, let's just hope the Plagg from the present doesn't get jealous." Chat told him.

"Alright, Emira, you and Tikki will come with me, I'll take you to a safe place. Chat, you take the boys with you, we'll meet here in ten." Chat nodded.

Ladybug took hold of Emira and jumped to the nearest building, using her yo-yo to navigate around the dark city.

"I know of a bakery, it's not far and it's Tikki's favorite... or was... the point is, it'll be warm and cozy for you." Ladybug said as they swung together through the rooftops but Emira didn't say anything because her teeth were chattering loudly. They kept going until they landed in Marinette's rooftop. Ladybug opened the trap door and led Emira inside, but when Ladybug entered, she tripped on some random object lying around and falling face-first to the floor.

"Mom!" Emira yelled and covered her mouth immediately.

"What?!" Ladybug said standing up from the floor swiftly since her suit had protected her from the fall.

"Nothing, I said nothing..." She said nervously climbing down the stairs

"No, you called me mom! I heard you loud and clear."

"Did you hear mom? What I meant was... Ma-Marinette!" Ladybug's eyes widened even more. "That's not better is it?" Emira grunted. "I think I just screwed up real bad."

"You're my daughter?"

"Well... yeah or at least I will be"

"But, I don't get it... I would never call a daughter of mine something like Emira"

"Well, that's because my true name is..."

"Emma?!" Ladybug finished for her, looking at her in the eye.

"You know already?" Emma's eyes sparkled with tears.

"I've always known!" Ladybug caressed Emma's cheek with her gloved hand, smiling tenderly. "I'm so gonna punish you for this." Emma chuckled nervously.

"You really can't, cause my real mom is years in the future and I haven't even been born yet."

"Oh but I'll remember this, and I'll have all those years to think of the best way to punish you for it." Ladybug said as she started to search in her cabinets for some macaroons for Tikki. Meanwhile, Emma took a seat on Marinette's _chaise longue_ and covered herself with a blanket. "So, daughter..."

"Just call me Emma, it's weird if you call me daughter since real mom is way older, and she never calls me that."

"How much older?"

"Old enough to be my mother."

"That's not a real answer."

"Well, there are many things I can't talk to you about." Ladybug finally found a macaroon and some chocolate chip cookies and gave them to Tikki who had been exploring the room as if it was the first time she'd been there.

"So..." Marinette said after a moment of silence. "I'm curious, who's your dad?"

"My dad? I... I don't know." She looked at the floor.

"You don't know?"

"Yeah, he's a mysterious fellow who comes and goes wherever he pleases and I don't know who he is." Ladybug thought of someone that fits that description and blushed a bit at the prospect of having a child with him.

"Are you sure about that?"

"Positive." In that instant, Tikki turned the computer on, and a sweet vintage song started to play, it was the kind of song she used to study, but she really liked it. "Is that _'put your head on my shoulder_?'" She asked getting lost in the melody.

"Yeah, it's in my study time playlist."

"My dad and I use to sing that song all the time." Ladybug looked at Emma with a raised eyebrow.

"I thought you said you didn't know who your dad was."

"Ah, shoot! Yeah... it's just he travels often but he comes home sometimes and we play some music, I sing and he plays..."

"You know your answers aren't very coherent."

"That's because they're lies, Marinette." Came Tikki's voice. "You should know by now Marinette, it's better not to ask questions about the future, if we tell you what happens it won't happen." Tikki finished as she swallowed the last bite of a chocolate chip cookie.

"I guess you're right but... did you said your dad is a musician?"

"Stop asking questions! I really can't answer them! Tikki, come on, transform me so we can go home. Tikki spots on!" Tikki was sucked into Emma's earings and she transformed into a shorter version of Ladybug.

Both Ladybugs looked at themselves in the mirror and the older Ladybug said, "wow, it's impressive how much we look alike."

"That's what auntie Juleka always says..." Emma giggled, unaware of what she had just done.

"Auntie Juleka?" Marinette asked, and Emma's eyes widened.

"No I mean... yeah but... I think it's better if I just stop talking..."

"Does that mean..."

"Listen, mom, if you must know, my dad is an amazing person, and you'll know who he is at the right moment, but please, stop asking questions or my whole existence could be in danger."

"Fine, you're right, let's just go meet the boys, it's about time already."

o0o

Meanwhile, with the boys.

Chat Noir was unaware of the exchange that was going on behind him. The kids knew that Chat Noir had better ears than anyone and would hear them speak if they weren't careful, so instead they exchanged looks and gestures to make the other understand what they were planning.

"Alright, I think I know a safe place where I can take you to." Chat said as he examined his surroundings. "Who wants to go first."

"Take us Chat," Plagg said raising his paw. "if you're taking us where I think you're taking us, I know where they keep the cheese!"

"Alright then, Hugh" Chat pointed to one of the shivering twins.

"I'm Luke."

"Luke, come with me. I'll be back for you in a second, Hugh." Chat carried Luke in his arms and jumped rooftop to rooftop until he reached his own house, which wasn't very far from the alleyway where they had been hiding. He dropped off Luke and went back to find Hugh shivering intensely. "Come on Luke, I'll take you to a warm place." Hugh didn't say anything about his name, instead, he clung to Chat Noir as a sloth clinging to a tree.

When they reached the Agreste Mansion, specifically, Adrien's room they found Luke staring at the room, awestruck.

"Look, Hugh, this is _his_ room."

"Wow!" Hugh was still shivering hard, so Chat took a blanket from the bed and tossed it to him.

"I suppose Plagg already found the cheese, where's Fluff?" Chat asked and Fluff emerged from under Hugh's cap. "Alright little fella, You'll find the cheese in that set of drawers." He pointed to his desk.

"This place is amazing!" Hugh said heading to the foosball table, while Luke took the stairs and went to see the video game collection. For a few seconds they were enjoying their time, but that was until Chat Noir poked Hugh's shoulder with his baton with a menacing look, this took him by surprise so he put his hands up.

"Now that we're alone, you'll tell me exactly who you are." Chat manded with a mischievous grin. Luke noticed this from where he was standing and swung down from the fire station pole where he found Adrien's fencing gear and taking one of the fencing swords he went on Chat Noir and fought him. Luke was quick on his feet but not faster than Chat Noir so he had the advantage, that was until Hugh took on of the poles of the foosball table and hit Chat Noir with it sending him flying towards the window. Noticing that he had now two opponents, chat Noir divided his staff in two and started fighting with two hands. The twins were good, their strikes were strong and precise, but they were no match for a trained and powerful superhero, and soon they were both on the floor, unarmed, and Chat Noir pointing at them with his batons.

"I see your father thought you well," Chat said, and the twins looked at each other in dismay. "Who did you think you were fooling, you guys look exactly like him!"

"Ha! That's what mom always says!" Hugh said smiling, but Luke looked restless.

"Since when did you know?" He asked.

"From the moment your transformation wore off! At first, I thought you were me from the future or something," He addressed Luke. "but then I saw you guys were twins and it all came together."

"People call us the Agreste twins!" Hugh said proudly. "And they do say we look like you." Chat's eyes widened as he realized what he was saying.

"Yeah dad, we know who you are," Luke said finally standing up from the floor. "And if you wanted to protect your identity that bad, you probably shouldn't have brought us to your home..." They stopped talking when they heard steps outside the door and Chat carried them to the second floor of his bedroom where they laid low, staying hidden from whoever was coming.

The door opened and a very concerned Gabriel Agreste entered the room, the twins froze next to Chat and shared panicked looks, but he didn't notice, as he was too busy making sure his father didn't see them.

"Sir?" Came Natalie's voice from outside the room.

"I could swear I heard something."

"It was probably just the wind." Gabriel froze right in front of the bed, had he looked up, he would have seen the three younger Agrestes hiding.

"Maybe you're right, let's get back to work." The boys waited until Gabriel stepped out of the room but they weren't satisfied until they heard him close the door behind him. The twins were about to get out of their hiding place but Chat pressed them unto the floor still listening to the steps fade away in the distance. Once he made sure the older Agreste was far away he and the twins sat up in relief.

"That was Gabriel Agreste!" Hugh let out, but Luke covered his mouth.

"Mh, yeah, he's your grandfather, right?" Chat inquired.

"Yeah, he is," Luke said but Hugh licked his hand so he made a face of disgust but didn't take his handoff. "It's just we don't see him that often." Chat's face fell.

"I suppose he hasn't changed in the future." The twins looked at each other and mouthed unintelligible words taking advantage of Chat's momentaneous distraction. "But how about you tell me something more interesting." Chat said recovering from his moment of sadness and looked at the twins who were now smiling broadly at him. "Like, why don't you talk to me about your mother?" He beamed.

"Oh, she's great!" Hugh said and Luke elbowed him softly. "The two of you trained us in fencing!" Luke elbowed him harder this time and looked at him with a killer look.

"Is your mother a good fencer?" Chat asked.

"Yeah, she's... oof!" Hugh was about to say something but Luke punched him hard on his stomach much to Chat's surprise.

"Sorry dad, but we can't talk about our mother."

"Why not? and why did you hit Luke?"

"I'm Luke, and if we tell you what happens then it won't happen, or at least that's what you always said."

"Okay, so Luke is the responsible one..." Chat looked at them still not sure which twin was which, so he started scanning the room until he found a marker in one of the bookshelves, he took it and got close to them. "Which one of you is the oldest?"

"Me." "Luke." They said at the same time, and Chat got close to them and put his hand on his shoulder as he motioned to write something on his forehead.

"Uh... What are you doing?" Luke questioned him.

"Shh... Listen to your father." Chat said with a smile as he wrote the number 1 on his forehead, then he moved to Hugh.

"You're not writing anything on my face!"

"Well, it's either that or I'll end up switching your miraculous, now standstill." Chat put a gloved hand on his shoulder and wrote the number 2 on his forehead. Once Chat was done the twins looked at each other confused but they didn't have time to argue as a small voice came to them

"Ah, I haven't eaten this much since yesterday, which was today but from tomorrow!"

"I'm glad you had a nice meal, Fluff," Hugh told her. "Come on, let's go home."

The three Agrestes enjoyed their way back to the alley where they had agreed to meet again with Ladybug. They jumped from building to building pushing each other, racing, making puns and jokes, it was impressive how well they understood each other. How many people can say that about their parents?

But the moment they all dreaded was coming, as the alleyway was every time closer, and they could see two red silhouettes waiting for them in the darkness.

"It's time..." Chat Noir/Adrien said downcast. But then a gloved hand stood on his shoulder, Chat Noir/Luke gave him a sad smile. "I can't wait to meet you guys again."

"Neither can we, but before that, there's something you need to know." Chat Luke said.

"These are not our real names," White Rabbit continued. "I'm Hugo."

"And I'm Louis." He finished with a smile. "We're just saying... cause we don't want to end up with the wrong names."

"Don't worry my children, I'll remember." They looked at each other contently.

"Come on children! We don't have all day!" Emira's voice came from the alleyway.

"We're coming!" Hugo screamed at the top of his lungs. "Ugh, she can be a real pain in the..."

"Watch it, Hugo, let's just go now."

o0o

Now, on Ladybug's point of view, they had been waiting at the alleyway for several minutes, until they finally saw the boys arriving.

"So, if you're my daughter in the future, then who are they?" Ladybug/Marinette asked pointing at the three boys that were getting closer and closer to the alleyway.

"Oh, those are the Agreste twins." Ladybug/Emma stated nonchalantly.

"Adrien Agreste's sons?"

"Yup." She said looking everywhere but Ladybug's eyes

"I'm glad to hear you guys are friends." Marinette let out a sigh.

"Oh yeah, very good friends, we're practically family... But we aren't," She giggled scratching her hair, "Come on children! We don't have all day!" She yelled at the three figures of superheroes that seem to be saying their goodbyes.

"We're coming!" They heard one of the twins scream and soon they were all descending the building they were on.

"It was a pleasure spending time with you guys," Chat Noir/Luke said. And the other two children from the future nodded in agreement.

"We'll see you in a few years." Chat said smiling sadly.

"Sure will." White Rabbit/Hugh used his power to create a time portal, in which they entered among repeated goodbyes and an occasional tear. How was it that they had made such a connection in just a few minutes together?

Now, the answer to what the children found on the other side of the portal is a mystery, or at least it would be for years to come, or if you are reading this fanfic, you'll find the answer to that question on my next fanfiction coming on spring 2020. Be on the lookout for 'aftershock.'

o0o

Adrien came out of the bathroom where he had supposedly been for the last half hour.

"Dang dude, are you okay? You've been in that bathroom for like an hour." Nino asked him cuddling in a blanket with a sleeping Alya under his arm.

"Yeah, I took my phone with me and lost the track of time looking at ...memes... My legs are still a bit numb." Nino smiled understandingly, but before he could add anything else, a door opened and Marinette came out of the other bathroom.

"Dang Marinette, did you get distracted looking at memes too?"

"What? Oh, Hehe, yeah..." She stammered.

"Numb feet?" Adrien asked and she turned around to see him.

"Yeah," Adrien looked intently in her eyes, which made Marinette blush a little.

"I feel you," He whispered.

"Come on you two, let's watch a movie," Nino told them, and as the night wore off, and as Marinette ended up falling asleep on Adrien's shoulder, he couldn't help but wonder, where did his sons get their blue eyes from? Ladybug? Could it possibly be Marinette?

_**I don't understand what I want,** _

_**I can't fall in love.** _

_**Where does this mysterious feeling come from?** _


	8. Chapter 8

_**Chapter 8** _

_**un jour viendra, tu découvriras** _

_**Le bonheur d'être à deux, toi et moi** _

_**lorsqu'on on se serrera dans nos bras** _

Marinette was trying hard not to think about it, but it was becoming more and more difficult because every time she wanted to stop thinking about it, she thought about it even more.

"Who could it be, Tikki?" She asked the kwami while lying on her bed when she was supposed to be asleep.

"Emma's dad? Again with that?" Tikki grumbled. "Go back to sleep Marinette, it's the seventh time you ask me the same question, I know the same as you do,"

"I know but... could it be... I mean, she did look a little bit like him..."

"Like who?" Marinette was silent for a moment.

"No one, I think you're right, I should stop obsessing about the future," She replied nervously.

"Remember, if you know what happens it won't happen,"

Marinette rolled to the other side of her bed, but she found that she couldn't sleep. She was wide awake! Every effort to close her eyes ended up in her opening them again.

She rolled in her bed several for minutes, she even took off her socks and pants in hopes that it would make her feel more comfortable, but nothing helped.

"Tikki, what do you think of going on a quick patrol?"

"Patrol?" Tikki asked groggily. "You're the boss Marinette, but there are better ways to deal with insomnia,"

"Tikki spots on!" Marinette chanted and a sleepy Tikki was sucked into Marinette's earrings who was still tucked on her bed. She pushed out the covers and went out using the trapdoor to the balcony.

The cold night air from late November filled up Marinette's nostrils, making her feel alive and refreshed. Immediately she remembered Chat Noir and how he was always saying that parkouring around the city made him feel better.

"Why not?" Marinette pondered, starting by jumping to the next big building trying to use her yo-yo as little as possible, because today she didn't need to be fast, today she needed to be free. There was something to be said about not using her yo-yo, she was able to appreciate the city in a different light. The streets were deserted, only an eventual car would pass around, but all that could be seen were the lampposts and the lights of the Eiffel tower.

Marinette kept running, feeling the cold in her face and the burning in her legs, but none of it matter, because she was finally able to take her mind out of the things that were bothering her. She kept running, and running, and running until there was nowhere else to go. The lights of the city seemed distant, meaning she had reached the _Bois de Vincennes_ , a park on the outskirts of the city. She was curious about exploring the place at this late hour, but something caught her eye before she was able to make a choice.

Right before entering the _Bois de Vincennes_ , there was a poorly lighted alleyway, and from where she stood, Ladybug could see the silhouette of a man kneeling on the floor handling something, but Ladybug couldn't make him out from where she was standing. She decided she should investigate, after all, it was her duty to keep the city and it's people safe and who knew what this fellow was up to. The man was wearing all black, and it became evident as she got closer that he wasn't just any man, instead, it was someone she knew very well.

"Chat Noir?" He shushed her without turning around.

"I don't want you to scare them," he whispered as he motioned for her to come closer to him, she did so, quickly kneeling next to him. On Chat Noir's lap there were about half a dozen kittens from several colors, but apparently, all belonging to the same litter.

"Oh, my goodness Chat! They're gorgeous!" She exclaimed making one of the little kitties cringe. Chat shushed her again. "Sorry..." She whispered.

"Aren't they cute?" He whispered making soothing noises to calm down the scared kitten. "I saw them during my patrol, and couldn't help myself, I just had to pet them,"

"Who would have thought that Chat Noir would be such a good mother to these kitties," She muttered as she picked up one of the kittens.

"Don't freak out, but I'm more of a dog person?"

"You're what?" She half screamed scaring the kitten in her hands, "Sorry baby!" She soothed it.

"Stereotypes, my Lady, don't be guided by them,"

"But you're Chat Noir! You're supposed to be like the father of all cats,"

"Well, then I suppose you have an army of Ladybugs following you around,"

"Well technically..."

"Oh, don't come at me with that... What I mean is, I don't think our animal preferences were taken into consideration when Master Fu chose us to be the holders," He shifted his position now seated with his legs crossed. "Like, I don't think ladybugs are your favorite animals."

"Well, that still doesn't explain why I found you like a tom cat sitting on an alleyway playing with kitties."

"They're babies, and I don't see their mother around, and... they're babies!" Ladybug giggled.

"I can see they're babies..." Ladybug put the kitten she was holding down and went to catch another one that had gone astray. "So... why were you on patrol, we didn't agree on one tonight."

"I know, I just... I couldn't sleep..." He explained staring into the darkness.

"Good to know I wasn't the only one," Ladybug smiled sadly.

"It's just... those children visiting from the future got me thinking a lot about what's going to happen next," Chat sighed. "Like, where should I go to college? or what career path should I choose? who are those kids' parents? Do we know them?"

"You're not in college? I always thought you were way older than me,"

"What? No, m'Lady, I'm just a kitten, I haven't even graduated from the lycée"

"Well, that's new..."

"How about you, why couldn't you sleep?" He put the kitten on his lap and used his hands to turn around and lay his back on the wall.

"I was thinking about those kids too, they seemed familiar, so all I've been thinking about is who their parents are,"

"The twins look a lot like Adrien Agreste you know? And the girl looked exactly like Marinette!"

"Are you suggesting they are their children?" Ladybug stood up and imitated Chat's position against the wall, still holding on to one of the kittens.

"They could be, for all we know..." He scratched his head remembering he wasn't supposed to talk about this with Ladybug.

"I guess..." They sat on silence for a few seconds petting the kittens.

"What about you, my' Lady? Have you given a thought to your future?"

"I've always known what I want to do, and it seems that every day that passes I become more certain of it,"

"Lucky you! The rest of us, simple mortals, don't know what to decide yet," This made Ladybug giggle.

"Lucky me? I suppose you're the one that has tons of girls trying to get your attention,"

"What can I say, ladies can't resist a black knight like me," He boasted kissing one of his biceps, this made ladybug giggle even more. "But, none of them compares to you, my Lady," This made Ladybug blush behind her mask, so she turned her face to the cat in her hands to try to cover it. She didn't say anything for a moment, instead, she put the cat on the floor and picked up another one. "You're the only one I like, my Lady," he added, and Ladybug finally found the courage to look at him in the eyes, only to find that he was looking intently at her.

"Chaton..." She started with a sigh, trying to get rid of the not that had formed in her throat. "We've talked about this, this... us... it can't be," she shrugged.

"I know," he sighed looking away, and ladybug noticed that his cat ears were downcast. "That doesn't change the way I feel for you..." Ladybug felt a pang of guilt in her stomach as if someone had punched her hard, seeing Chat Noir this sad made her feel like the worst person alive, even more since all she wanted to do was grab him from his collar and kiss him. She gulped.

"I think it's better if I go now..." Ladybug put the cat down and motioned to leave, but Chat Noir held her hand

"No, my Lady, please don't go, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything, I didn't want to make you feel uncomfortable," He almost pleaded her not to go.

"Chat, you know nothing could ever happen between us, it's too dangerous," she continued.

"I know, I get that, I just... I just wanted you to know that there's someone out there that loves you," Ladybug could feel her heart grow, "Because I know how it feels like when nobody loves you," he looked down finally letting go of Ladybug's hand.

"What are you talking about?"

"Nothing, just... don't go, not just yet," Ladybug sighed at this, wondering what he meant before.

"Fine, but I'm just staying for the kittens."

"Well, I'm one of them already," He gave her a sad smile which she returned, and they went back to playing with the kittens. But at some point after that, when sleep was finally coming to get her, Ladybug put her head on Chat's shoulder.

"I do love you, Chat Noir," She could feel him stiffen from both her words and her actions, "Just... not that way..."

"That's more than enough for me, m'Lady." His muscles relaxed and he lowered his head to be on top of Ladybug's. After that, the kittens fell asleep on their laps, and Ladybug's eyelids were growing every time heavier and heavier, she tried to fight the tiredness, but it was impossible since Chat's soothing breaths next to her was making her even drowsier. She tried to hold on until she couldn't keep her eyes open anymore, and she closed them slowly, and slowly.

o0o

Ladybug woke up when the sunlight hit her face, and she felt a weight over her head and a few little paws on her lap. At first, she didn't understand the situation, until she remembered the previous night, and she sprung awake, waking up a sleepy Chat Noir.

"Chat, we fell asleep!" Ladybug exclaimed.

"Five more minutes..." He grunted while putting a hand around Ladybug's waist. She rolled her eyes and took out her yo-yo to check what time it was. She gasped.

"Chat, wake up, it's 7 am!"

"No, its... it's WHAT?!" He sprung awake, standing up so abruptly that he felt dizzy.

"Easy there, kitty, but we do have to hurry, it's only Tuesday."

"Crab, I have work today!"

"You work? I thought you said you go to school," Ladybug questioned him.

"I do both, call me a responsible child," He pointed at himself with his thumb, "But if I'm not home in like five minutes, I won't do either"

"But what about the kittens?" Ladybug inquired finding none of the kittens in sight, except one which was tumbling towards a cardboard box on the other side of the alleyway. Ladybug and Chat Noir looked at each other and then followed the tiny cat, only to find a much bigger black cat and all of the kitties gather around her trying to drink their breakfast. "I guess they did have a mom,"

"The lucky bastards," Chat joked.

"Mothers always come back to her babies," Ladybug noted making Chat smile faintly.

"Most of them do, anyway..." He whispered.

"What was that?"

"Nothing, I gotta go now, see you later m'Lady!" He rushed, then took his staff and left before Ladybug had time to say goodbye.

"Have a good day _chaton_ ," she whispered looking at his silhouette disappear, "And thank you, for always being there for me."

o0o

That day at school Marinette and I didn't have a class together, but I needed to tell her what I found out about Lila on the previous day. Marinette was right about something, she's a liar, and a good one at that. Her mind was an intricate network of lies, which explains how she's able to keep track of all of her lies, but she was also so good at lying that she believed some of them.

But anyways, during the lunch period I started looking for her among the crowds, I was determined to finding her before she got to the cafeteria, otherwise, I wouldn't be able to have a moment alone with her until tonight. It turned out the heavens were looking out for me and I found her resting against water fountain having one of those internal debates of her.

"Why am I so tired? I want to go home now! Is it because I slept with Chat Noir?" She thought.

"You what?!" I called out loudly enough for her to listen and turn her head in my direction; unfortunately, it was also loud enough for everyone else in the hallway to listen and turn their heads. "hehe," I giggle nervously. "Just talking with a friend on the phone, nothing to see here," I stammered motioning to the phone in my hands, "I'll call you back in a moment, Luz." I put my phone away making sure everybody had turned their attention back to their business.

"Alba?" Marinette looked at me confused.

"What do you mean you..." I but my tongue and got closer to her to whisper in her ear, "What do you mean you slept with Chat Noir?"

"Wha... What are you doing lurking in my head?"

"I can't help it, I'm a mind reader,"

"No, you're a mind reader while you're Sirena, right now you can only hear thoughts out of context,"

"Hence, I'm asking for an explanation,"

"Ugh, fine, if you must know... but not out here in the open, there are too many people here,"

"I have the perfect place for secrecy." I beamed.

o0o

"So much for 'not here in the open,'" Marinette muttered as she took in her surroundings because we were standing literally in the middle of the soccer field, and there weren't many people around, as most of them were having lunch.

"Sometimes the best way to hide something is making it seem as though you have nothing to hide, besides, this place is perfect, the people around here are too far to listen to what we say and if someone comes we'll see them in time to change the subject, there are no places to hide here," I sat on the grass

"I guess if you put it that way..."

"Enough chit chat, I want to chat about Chat!" I motioned for her to sit next to me.

"Alba there's not much to know, I was on 'patrol' last night..." She added air quotes with her fingers

"Patrol? You haven't gone on patrol in months!"

"Hence the air quotes, just listen,"

"Fine, I'll shut up..." I motioned a zipper over my lips.

Marinette explained how she'd gotten to the outskirts of the city and found the cutest of the scenes, she talked about her conversation with Chat and how they fell asleep together.

I was delighted with the news, and clasping my hands together I said, "That's so cute! You guys are so cute!" Marinette let out a sad smile, "You don't seem very happy about it though,"

"It's just... it all got me thinking... do I know Chat Noir?"

"What do you mean, you've known him for years, you..."

"Yeah, but... I mean, I've worked with him, I've put my life in his hands countless times, but what do I know about him? For example, yesterday he said that he hadn't graduated from the lycée yet! Can you believe that? That never even crossed my mind! I never really wondered about the person behind the mask,"

"Really? not even when he came to visit you as Marinette?"

"I mean, we had a lot of fun together and we talked about almost anything, but I never saw his as... as a person, you know? It's like when you're put together in a group assignment at school and you have to get along with the other person enough to not fail the assignment, but you don't think of your teammate as a person and more like a means with no other purpose in life than to work on that project with you."

"Wow, that's a dark way of looking at group projects... hey! we were on a group project together last week!" I demanded, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Well, my point is," She scratched the back of her head, "there were some things he said or I thought he said that made me wonder about him..." I waited for her to continue, "He said that he told me he loves me because he knows what it feels like to not feel loved, like what does that even mean?" She threw her hands in the air and then rested her chin on them.

"Are you thinking about Chat Blank?" The sole thought sent shivers down Marinette's spine.

"He never really happened, no one knows about him other than me, and future Bunix but she doesn't count. But the thing is, he said he was akumatized because I didn't love him anymore, at first I thought he was just being overdramatic, but now I wonder how much it really hurt him,"

"Marinette, Chat Blank is a product of an erased timeline, he never really happened,"

"Yes but it could have, and all because of me!" A tear slid through her shut eyes, and I could see how much the thought of Chat Blank still haunted her, so I slid an arm behind her back and hugged her letting her sob quietly "Who is he, Alba? you know him better than anyone,"

"We can never know a person, not entirely, which is great, cause they'll surprise us every now and again, but what we _can_ do is listen and pay attention to them, and then we'll know what matters, and what's important."

"Sometimes I wish we could be honest with each other, but we can't it's too dangerous, why is it that to keep him safe I have to stay away? I wish I could tell him who I am, I wish we could be ourselves; I wish I could tell him that I'll never leave him, but I can't! I can't because it would be a lie, because if we were together Hawk Moth or... or..." She broke out in a small sob, so I hugged her tighter.

After a few seconds, I asked, "What do you think he's like? When he's not wearing the mask?" I heard her giggle pulling away from me while she wiped a tear away.

"I always thought he was this crazy extrovert who hosts big parties and has a bunch of girls crawling behind him," She giggled again, but then her expression turned somber, "but now I'm not so sure..."

"Well, one of the things you said is true, though I'm afraid I can't tell you which one," I thought of Adrien being chased around the city by crazy fans and the thought made me giggle.

"That's okay, oddly enough that's comforting because that also means that you'll keep details from my life a secret,"

"I'm glad you see it that way," I smiled, but she wasn't looking at me.

"He did say something else," She continued, "When I said that mothers always come back to their children, I could swear I heard him say that at 'least some of them do', and that got me thinking about his mother, what happened to her? What kind of parents does he have?"

"Ah, well now, that's a great question," I raised a finger and then putting it back down, "That I can't give an answer to..."

"I wasn't expecting you to, but I mean, what if he is completely different from the person I thought he was? What if he has a dark past he doesn't talk about,"

"Yeah well, people with dark pasts don't like to talk about them," I explained but she didn't listen and instead kept talking,

"What if he's a musician?" She beamed,

"Yeah... wait, what? Why is that even important?"

"Emma said her father was a musician, and what if..."

"Emma who? Okay, you lost me there,"

"Emma, my daughter!" Although I could see the glimmer in her eyes and that she believed what she was saying, I couldn't understand what she meant.

"Marinette, are you on drugs?" I looked at her with a horrified expression,

"No! I... Emma is my daughter who came from the future with two boys who she said were the 'Agreste twins,' they came during the weekend, didn't I tell you?"

"Well, you obviously didn't, but wait! Did they come from the future? That's super dangerous, Marinette!"

"Yeah, but I haven't seen Bunix coming to fix it, and I clearly remember everything so, I guess it should be fine!" I put my hand on my chin thoughtfully.

"Or maybe that's just the way it was supposed to happen!"

"My point is, Emma looked a lot like me, except for her eyes which were emerald green, like Chat Noir's!"

"Like Chat Noir's!" I repeated with a thin voice, "Marinette, you shouldn't be thinking about this, the more you think about it, the lesser the chances of you ever meeting your precious Emma."

"You think so?"

"I definitely think so! Yes, Chat could be the father of your daughter, but he also might not be, so just let things flow naturally, I promise you, if this was meant to happen, then your daughter will be born in her time, not before and not after. In the meantime, why not focus on getting to know Chat?"

"Well, how can I if I can't know his identity!"

"You don't need to, just focus on the things that matter, his character, his choices, the way he acts under pressure, the way he treats others, how he behaves under stress and the things that make him laugh, I promise you, whatever his past has to hold is irrelevant against these things,"

"Why?"

"Because those are the things that will define his future."

"Alba, I just know it's him, and I know that one day, I'll be able to make him happy and I'll make him forget whatever painful memory he has,"

"People don't always forget, but they can forgive, you'll need to know this if want a successful life."

"He has something to forgive?"

"I honestly don't know, but we all do, eventually, and I have the feeling that whatever he's dealing with is only going to get worse." I finished when the bell rang and we had to go back to our respective classes.

o0o

Sometime after that, somewhere around the city stood a weeping woman. She was an amateur skydiver, but the doctor just told her she couldn't do it anymore because she had developed vertigo. But it was what she loved, how could she not do it anymore?

As her tears fell, she clung to her skydiving helmet, when a black and purple butterfly fused with it.

"Cloudjumper," Came a dark and ominous voice inside her head, "They underestimate your abilities, but I will give you the power to fly and show those doctors who you are, in exchange, you'll bring me Ladybug's and Chat Noir's miraculous."

"As you wish, Hawk Moth."

o0o

At first, nobody knew about the Akuma, because she was too busy enjoying her new pair of wings until it came to a point where Hawk Moth had to tell her to go and find Ladybug and Chat Noir.

Marinette was now watching tv with her parents when Nadja Chamack was pushed away from the screen and a stranger wearing a full helmet took control of the camera.

"Dear Ladybug and Chat Noir," she started with a distorted voice, "let me introduce myself, I'm Cloudjumper, and you have something that belongs to my master, come and face me unless you want to see Paris burn!" She dropped the mic and a pair of wasp-like wings emerged from her back and she took off flying.

"Was that an Akuma victim?" Tom questioned.

"Apparently," Sabine answered and Marinette looked distraught.

"Didn't look like one..." Tom continued.

"You guys, I forgot! I have a test tomorrow and I need to go to study..."

"Can't you go later? The show's about to start." Tom pointed at the screen.

"What kind of parents are you? Telling your daughter to watch a tv show before studying?"

"The cool type!" Tom exclaimed making Marinette giggled.

"Well, you are super cool, but I really need to study."

"Fine, be a responsible girl." Marinette kissed both her parents and left to her room.

"This is an odd Akuma, isn't it?" Tikki emerged from Marinette's purs.

"You think so too? She hasn't done anything, it's as if she just asked us on a date or something, but, an Akuma is an Akuma, let's go catch! Tikki spots on!"

Ladybug jumped out of the window and called Chat Noir as she ran towards the Eifel Tower.

"Chat, did you see it?" She asked him the moment he picked up the phone.

"Of course I did, I'm on my way to the Eifel tower."

"Okay, let's group there!" She hanged up the phone and continued on her way.

Chat Noir met her nearby the tower, but there was no sign of Cloudjumper.

"I've been looking for her all over the place, but I can't see her, what kind of Akuma doesn't want to be found?" Chat shrugged

"This kind, apparently..."

"Ladybug and Chat Noir, just the couple of superheroes I was looking for." They could hear her distorted voice but they couldn't see her until they looked up, and clearly enough there was a woman, similar to a robotic wasp flying in circles above them.

"We're not a couple, and who are you?" Ladybug demanded.

"My name is Cloudjumper," She remarked in a softer voice as she landed before them removing the visor of the helmet, letting her hazel eyes be seen, as well as her tan skin. She wasn't trying to hide her face. "Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against you, I just want your miraculouses for my master to be as happy as I am."

"Your master?"

"Why, Hawk Moth of course."

"You seem reasonable enough to see that he's pure evil." Chat spat

"He's not evil, he healed me, he gave me wings, and all he wants in return are your miraculouses, and I want to give them to him, so could you please..."

"Can't you see that he wants to use them for an evil purpose?"

"I don't know what his purposes are, but how bad can they be if he healed me!"

"So you keep saying," Chat rolled his eyes at her.

"How good can he be if he's waiting for payback? If he was as good as he claims to be wouldn't he heal you for free?"

"I think it's a fair price, now, enough chit chat and give me your miraculous, or I'll be forced to take them from you!"

"Come and try it!" Chat defied her.

Cloudjumper's eyebrows furrowed as her face was covered again by the helmet and she expanded her wings and took off flight, high in the sky, so high in fact that Ladybug and Chat Noir lost track of her and didn't notice when she came flying straight to Ladybug knocking her to the floor, aiming to take off her earrings.

"Now Hawk Moth will be pleased," In the struggle, Cloudjumper managed to take Ladybug's yo-yo pinning her to the floor, using the yo-yo to tie her up. She was about to take her earrings when something tapped her on the shoulder, she turned around in time to see chat whamming her with his baton.

"I hate bugs," Chat hissed as Ladybug managed to stand up, but she gave him a quizzical look, "Not you, my lady, of course, I don't like the type that bite,"

"Who says I don't," She winked and left to see to Cloudjumper, leaving a lovestruck Chat Noir behind. "It's over, Cloudjumper," Cloudjumper laughed, rubbing her chin where Chat hit her.

"You think I'm giving up this easily?" She stood up tall and immediately her wings started to grow taller than her, she used the wings to fly but she also started wagging them to and fro, creating a strong wind current, enough to disorient Ladybug and Chat Noir. She used the distraction to fly up to the sky in the direction of the sun, and Ladybug and Chat Noir, who was following her with their gazes were forced to close their eyes because of it's brightness.

Cloudjumper didn't lose a moment and making use of her bigger and stronger wings she turned back and grabbed Ladybug with one hand and Chat with the other. They tried to fight back, but by that time they were already so high in the sky that it was becoming harder for them to breathe. Cloudjumper was getting tired too, and she started to descend, perhaps involuntarily.

"helmet," Chat Noir mouthed at Ladybug, and she looked up and understood what he meant.

"Lucky charm!" Ladybug chanted, but the light of the miraculous blinded Cloudjumper and she let go of both of them before Ladybug could catch the enchanted object. Chat noticed that the Eifel tower was nearby

"Stick in the tower?" He asked and she nodded in response

This was a reference to an all too familiar maneuver where Chat Noir threw his baton to the Eiffel tower where it stuck in one of the holes in time for Ladybug to used her yo-yo to swing Chat and herself to the relative safety of the highest floor of the Eifel tower. While swinging, Chat was able to take hold of the object Ladybug had produced.

"Handcuffs?" He pointed out as Cloudjumper landed in front of them.

Using her Ladybug vision, she saw the handcuffs, Cloudjumper, a pipe in the tower and Chat Noir's hand. She had a plan, and she whispered it in Chat's ear.

"At your service my Lady," he bowed making her blush a little, but she came back to reality ready to face the Akuma.

"Calatysm!" Chat belted pointing his hands to Cloudjumper's helmet, but she moved aside and Chat fell face-first on the floor, he tried again but failed again, and a third time, each time getting closer to the edge of the tower, but Cloudjumper didn't see two things coming, for once, Chat didn't say the real trigger word, and when she moved to dodge Chat's attacks she fell into ladybug's trap, and her foot was now trapped in one end of the handcuffs, the other end was closed in one of the pipes of the tower, making it impossible for her to fly away.

Chat used her initial shock and, saying the right trigger word this time, used his cataclysm to break the helmet. The Akuma flew away and Ladybug purified it, which freed the victim and she went back to normal, she stood up but her feet were still stuck on the handcuff. Ladybug went to free her side first, and then the one on the pipe to use the object to repair any collateral damage.

But as Ladybug was getting ready to do her thing, she looked to see that the woman was no longer standing on the edge of the tower, instead, she heard a panicked scream, and when she looked to the edge, she saw her falling with her eyes closed.

Without wasting any time, Ladybug and Chat jumped down to try to catch her, but it was too late, by the time they got a clear shot to catch her she had already hit the floor.

I cannot possibly try to describe the terror that came over Ladybug as she saw the blood pouring from the woman's head, and her lifeless eyes looking back at her. Chat Noir was shocked too, but he moved slowly towards her and checked for vitals, but there were none.

"Is she..." Ladybug mumbled but Chat didn't look at her.

"You haven't used your miraculous Ladybug, that'll fix everything." A ray of hope shone in ladybug's heart as she chanted,

"Miraculous ladybug!" And the ladybugs fixed all the collateral damage caused by the Akuma, even the blood from the woman's head wounds, in fact, the wound disappeared altogether. "Did it work?" She asked dubiously, and Chat checked for vitals again, but his face turned a sickening tone of white when he shook his head. "What? How can that be? The wound is healed!"

"There's only one thing that Ladybug can't fix," came a well know voice from under the Eiffel tower, and both heroes turned to face Master Fu, "life."

_**One day you'll find out,** _

_**The happiness of us two, you and me,** _

_**when we hug each other!** _


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

_**Mais pourquoi si mon cœur est ailleurs** _

_**Je sens dans mon âme une chaleur** _

_**Un frisson que me porte bonheur** _

"This is all your fault!" Ladybug snapped at Chat Noir.

"My fault? How is this my fault?" Chat, who had been kneeling next to the body of the unnamed Akuma victim, stood up abruptly.

"You're always boasting of being the fastest of the two, you should have caught her!"

"Well, you're the one that has a yo-yo, you could have caught her even faster than me!"

"I was busy trying to clean up a mess!"

"Well, now we have a bigger mess to clean!" Chat growled

"And whose fault is that?!"

"Children, you need to calm down and do what needs to be done," Master Fu intervened, "call an ambulance and explain what happened."

But it turned out it wasn't necessary because an ambulance was already on its way, as was the news helicopter. Apparently, everyone had seen her fall. In a matter of seconds, a crowd of reporters had gathered around them, away from the body as the paramedic took her away.

"What happened to her, Ladybug?" One reporter asked

"Why did she fall?" Growled another.

"What do you have to say to her family?"

Overwhelmed by the amount of questioning reporters, Ladybug was left speechless.

Noticing Ladybug's despair, Chat Noir grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the mob of reporters. But she was still furious at him, so as soon as they got to a secluded place, she snatched her hand from his grasp and fled in the other direction

o0o

They were trending on the news and social media for the next couple of days, the fall of the Akuma victim had become viral and the news channels were talking about them as Paris' greatest failure.

"Are we all really safe in this city?" Nadja Chamack reported that night, "Not even Ladybug and Chat Noir can solve any problem! Don't be bemused It's just the news!"

Even the Ladyblog was talking about it. Thankfully Alya wasn't as severe as the other media. Her post was more of an apology to the Family of the victim who was apparently called Adelynn Mason, a skydiver diagnosed with vertigo.

"So that's what she meant when she said Hawk Moth healed her," Adrien told himself as he kept watching the news.

That day he pretended to have a cold to skip school. It wasn't like him to deliberately skip school, but today he felt so absolutely terrible that he'd rather stay at his cold empty house than having to face another human being. He didn't sleep the previous night either, because every time he closed his eyes all he could see was Adelynn's lifeless face.

Marinette was in no better shape, the memory of the bloodstained face made her insides turn. She didn't have to pretend to be sick that day because she actually threw up several times.

Every time the news popped up she felt helpless and frustrated, after all, it was her duty to heal and fix everything and everyone after a fight, but she had just learned that she couldn't bring a dead person back to life, how was she supposed to deal with that? How many times did she put Chat's life in danger? How many other lives have been in danger in the past? How careless had she been? This had been the first time she saw someone die in her watch, but the thought of there ever being more... she didn't know how to cope with that.

Nothing seemed to cheer her up, not even when Alya and her friends came to check on her. She simply told them that she was sick with food potioning. To make her lie more believable, when the girls started gossiping about Adelynn, her stomach churned and she had to run to the bathroom, not being able to control her nausea.

That was the way their lives went for the next couple of days, except, that Adrien, not being able to pretend being sick for much longer, was forced to go to school the third day after the tragic accident.

When people stared and asked about his eyebags he would only answer, "I couldn't sleep much," though of course, that was an understatement, he didn't sleep at all!

But as these two were suffering miserably, Alba's life continued. We needed to find Hawk Moth, now more than ever. I decided to continue my searches, and today, my beloved list brought me to the Agreste mansion. My target was Gabriel Agreste, who had been Akumatised just a few months ago.

I reached a house near the mansion and pulled out the little note pad I had, with the names of the akumatized victims.

"Alright, Mr. Agreste-" I checked his name on the list, "-let's see what you've been up to this past year," I said to myself, taking the middle prong of my trident to use it as a telescope.

He wasn't in the living room, or the dining room, or the kitchen, that's for sure. Ah, there he was, in his office...

"Boo!" I screamed as somebody came at me from behind.

"Oh my God, Chat?! what on earth do you think you're doing?!" he laughed at my reaction.

"I could ask you the same question, Sirena. I saw you from my bedroom's window and decided to pay you a little visit," He smiled, though the smile didn't reach his eyes, "So, now's your turn, what are you doing here out in the open?"

"My job?" I told him matter-of-factly.

"Looking for Hawk Moth? You already know I'm not him,"

"Yeah, but your dad's on the list of the akumatized victims, so I needed to check that out," He nodded, but I could see that something was bugging him, no pun intended. "I can see her face in your head,"

"I haven't seen her since Cloudjumper," he hid his face in his arms, "I wonder how she's coping."

"You haven't been yourself lately either, you even missed a couple of days at school, and it's really not like you,"

"I'm not feeling like myself," Thoughts of desolation and desperation flooded his mind.

"You're not alone kitty, you have me," I chimed

"Not to be rude or anything, but you're not exactly the company I had in mind," He shrugged.

"Well, you were the one who came up and scared me!"

"I thought you can predict when someone is coming your way," he said with a crooked smile

"Hardly, I just pay attention to my surroundings, but today you found me in a vulnerable position," He elbowed me smiling, but I could still see him hurting. "Give her time, Chaton,"

"Of course, it's just... I need her more than anything right now, we're a team, we share our victories as much as we should share our defeats, and this, was our first real defeat," He lamented.

"I get it Chat, I really do, but teams are formed by individuals, and sometimes they need to deal with stuff on their own before they can come together..." I was cut out by the sound of an explosion coming from behind us, followed by car alarms and screams, many screams.

We looked at each other, knowing exactly what the other one was thinking.

"I guess you will get to see your lady today after all," I smiled at him.

"Alright, I have work to do, you, find a place to hide and detransform,"

"I know my place _Chaton_ , now go, Paris needs it's heroes," I smiled warmly at him and he returned the gesture, disappearing in the night.

Looking back at this exact moment I wonder, how different would things be if Chat hadn't appeared? Or if I hadn't checked Gabriel Agreste's name before checking his thoughts? But I guess we'll never know.

o0o

Back to the story. The Akuma turned out to be a guy named Pyro, with the power to control and throw balls of fire. Ladybug and Chat Noir arrived just in time to prevent him from burning a building with people inside it. They dodged his attacks but Chat, glad to be able to see his Lady again tried to start a conversation,

"Is it hot in here, or is it just me?" As if a punishment for his bad joke, Pyro threw a ball of fire his direction, and Chat, being distracted by Ladybug, wasn't fast enough to dodge it. The ball hit him on the face, the only part of his body that wasn't protected by the suit.

"Chat Noir!" Ladybug yelled as she saw him crutch in pain,

"I'm fine," he assured her, although an ugly burn was visible all through his cheek.

Ladybug, unsatisfied with his answer called her lucky charm, which was a life jacket. Looking around she understood what they needed to do.

They were close to a bridge, so Ladybug convinced Chat to lure Pyro to it and destroy it when he reached the middle. Once he did, the three of them fell into the river. He was still able to manipulate fire being wet, but Ladybug and Chat Noir were safe from his attacks. They sawm to where he was and pushed him underwater.

Chat Noir's injuries started to sting, and even though he tried not to complain, Ladybug noticed that he flinched every time a wave of water washed over his face. She hurried and slid the bracelet on Pyro's hand, then used her yo-yo to take herself out of the water, break the bracelet, releasing the Akuma and purifying it, all this while Chat dragged the detransformed Akuma victim out of the water. Then, when Ladybug used her healing power, all the fires around the city were put out, the bridge was fixed and Chat's burnt cheek was restored to its original glory.

He gleamed noticing that the stinging was gone and that they had won another they made sure that there were no casualties, Chat said

"Pound it?" Expecting a fist bump, but closed her eyes and pinched her nose,

"What were you thinking?" She hissed.

"What?" he asked genuinely confused.

"You're reckless Chat Noir! You're always the one getting us in trouble! You're always getting hurt! Why can you be more careful?!" She snapped at him,

"My lady, I..." He tried to say something, but the beeping of their miraculouses prevented them from doing so. Ladybug huffed and left with an angry frown hidden under her mask.

Chat, on the other hand, stood there, looking at her go, wondering what was going through her mind, she'd never said anything like that to him. True, he got a couple bruises, but nothing that her miraculous couldn't fix, right?

"Give her time," Chat was startled by the voice of an old man coming from behind him.

"Master Fu? You're here again?" Chat Noir let out.

"I'm always around, you'll see me if you pay enough attention,"

"That's... not true," he huffed.

"Perhaps it is, perhaps it's not. Anyways my house is nearby," Master Fu pointed the direction of his residence, chat nodded, but his face fell as he sighed.

"Imagine having the power to heal and to repair anything you can ever think of-" Master started, Chat nodded trying to follow his train of thought, "-and suddenly you discover that you were wrong, that you can't heal everything, and that your power is useless when it's needed the most," Chat scratched his head beginning to understand. "That is how Ladybug is feeling right now, I know it's still hard for you, but she carries a great weight on her shoulders,"

"I know it's a heavy responsibility, but I wish she'd let me share the burden with her."

"For everything, there's a season, give time to time, patience is always rewarded," Chat sighed and nodded, just when his ring started to beep.

"One minute! Thank you for the advice, Master Fu, but I gotta run," he blurted out, master Fu nodded in response. Chat pulled out his baton and started jumping from building to building, until, while he was in the middle of a leap, his transformation wore off completely, making him lose balance crashing disastrously against a chimney, then roll several feet on the roof tiles. He moaned as pain crawled all over his arm, his right arm, as well as on his knee.

"Kid, kid are you okay?" Came Plagg's breathless voice.

"Yeah, I just..." He flinched holding his right hand, "I'm just glad I didn't fall off the building." Plagg sighed in relief and then collapsed in Adrien's lap. "I'm sorry Plagg, I shouldn't have pushed you that hard."

"It's alright, just give me my cheese," Plagg growled. Adrien checked on the pocket where he usually kept the cheese but it was empty, much to Adrien's despair.

"Oh no!" He exclaimed checking desperately in every other pocket he had, "I... I'm sorry Plagg, I think I forgot to restock." But Plagg didn't say anything, instead, he just curled into a ball, rubbing his belly. "Plagg?" Still no response, "Oh no, I'm so sorry Plagg, don't worry, I'll find a way out of here," He looked around to see if he could find a way off the building, but he couldn't see any. What he did see was something else, a familiar place, a bakery, right next to where he landed. The only thing separating him from it was a small street, but now he didn't have his staff with him.

"This is gonna hurt," he whispered to himself. "Hold on tight, Plagg, I'll get your cheese." Adrien stood up, but a wave of pain washed over him as he tried to stand on his left foot. Fighting the tears he bit his lips, took a deep breath and taking some impulse jumped straight into Marinette's balcony. He was about to make it, until he didn't make it, at least not entirely, he was barely able to grab on to the railing... with his bad hand. Adrien couldn't help an agonized groan escape him, yet the Adrenaline in his system was all he needed. He gathered all the strength he could manage and thrusted himself into the balcony.

Now the pain was stronger than ever, but he managed to crawl on the balcony collapsing against the wall. His breath was coming in short and quick gasps. He shut his eyes tight, but he knew he had to get the cheese for Plagg if he ever wanted to get better, so he knocked on Marinette's bedroom trapdoor, making sure to stay hidden behind some plants. When he saw the door flung open he yelled:

"Stop, don't come close!"

"Chat Noir? What is it, what's wrong?" Marinette asked with a worried expression.

"I'm... not presentable?" She fell silent for a moment before continuing,

"What do you mean? Are you not transformed?" She said sarcastically,

"Well..."

"Oh my God, you're not transformed? Are you nuts? What are you doing here?"

"Marinette," he moaned making her fall silent again, "I can... explain everything, but I need you to... do me... a favor," he said breathing rapidly.

"Wha... are you... are you hurt?"

"Mari, that's not important right now, but can you please help me?" He said more sternly now.

"All... alright, what do you need?" She whispered after a pause.

"I need you to feed my kwami, he likes cheese," He said simply trying to prevent another moan from escaping his lips.

"Aaaah... sure, I'll be right back," Those minutes waiting for her felt like an eternity, for both Adrien and Plagg, but it couldn't have been more than a few minutes until Marinette came back, though she didn't come out this time, instead she just pushed a tray with a variety of cheeses onto the floor, "I didn't know which one he liked, so I brought all of them," came her muffled voice from under the trapdoor.

Adrien grabbed Plagg out of his jacket and placed him on top of the cheese. Plagg gasped at the majestic sight, he spun in the air and looked ad Adrien with dreamy eyes, exclaiming, "Marry her!" in a tiny voice before diving into the tray. This made Adrien giggle but the effort made his abdomen hurt, so he just sat still, waiting for the kwami to finish his meal. It didn't take him long, and soon Plagg was ready to transform Adrien.

Once the transformation was complete, he felt a little better, but his hand, foot, and abdomen still hurt. However, he still knocked on the trapdoor and went into Marinette's room.

"Chat Noir! You're bleeding!" was her greeting. Adrien touched his forehead, and it felt sticky.

"Just a scratch," but then he touched a particularly sore spot, and flinched. She flinched with him and motioned for him to sit on her bed.

"What happened to you? Didn't Ladybug's miraculous heal you?" She examined his forehead and went down the stairs of her bed.

"It did, trust me, this kitty has seen tougher days, but this happened after she fixed everything," he said. When Marinette didn't say anything he continued, "I was on my way home but I couldn't hold the transformation for long, so basically I detransformed mid-air while jumping over a building," Marinette came back to her bed holding a first aid kit, "Why do you have a first aid kit in your bedroom?"

"I'm clumsy," She answered nonchalantly, in such a cold tone that Chat didn't say anything else, "where does it hurt?" She asked opening the small white box.

"My hand and my ankle," he held them up as much as he could, "my abs hurt a little but you don't want to deal with those," He flashed a grin, but if she noticed she chose to ignore his attempt at gallantry as she was too busy preparing the bandages. Chat, noticing what she was about to do, he took off his glove to show a swollen red hand, but he was still able to move it, which meant it wasn't broken. It was great news to Chat but not to Marinette, instead, at the sight of the hand, she closed her eyes shut and bit her lip.

"Why do you do this kind of thing?" She fumed without looking at him.

"What?"

"Why do you put yourself in this kind of situation? You're always putting yourself in danger, Ladybug is not always able to save you! Why do you keep doing things like this?!"

"You say it as if I did it on purpose. Mari, you're forgetting, I'm a superhero, bruises and stuff like this happen, they're just occupational hazards,"

"Yeah, as long as Ladybug can heal you! And as long as you're transformed! What were you thinking?!"

"Gee, you sound like Ladybug" he mumbled, "Princesss, I'm not a china doll without the transformation, I can take care of myself..."

"Oh sure, I can see that!" She pointed at him, "And then you keep putting yourself in danger to protect Ladybug, and you keep getting hurt and you... you.. you could die Chat, what if something terrible happens to you? What if it's something that Ladybug can't fix!" She barked as a tear rolled from her cheek turning her face away to hide it.

"Don't worry about that, remember I have 9 lives! Besides, it's my job to protect Ladybug as much as it's hers to protect me, it just so happens that she gets in tighter spots than I do. Sometimes I have to risk a lot just to save her," he explained lightheartedly, but this only worked to infuriate her even more,

"Well don't! I'd much rather that she dies before you do!" She cried,

"What? Marinette, you don't mean that. Ladybug is much too precious, and she's the only one able to purify akumas, Paris would be lost without her, nobody cares what happens to me..."

"I care!" She yelled, "I freaking care!" she punched him on his chest not being able to hold the tears any longer, "how dare you do this kind of thing?" She hit him again, leaving Chat in shock, "How could I live without your stupid puns! You stupid cat! Why are you like this? why?!" She kept yelling and hitting him until Chat couldn't take it anymore and caught her between his arms, resting his chin on her head, at first she resisted, but she settled into the hug slowly, letting her tears roll. "Stupid cat," she repeated in a sob,

"I know," He soothed her stroking her hair, while he let her cry in silence.

"Don't say that Chat," she added after several minutes of sobbing and crying,

"Mh? Don't say what?" She broke the embrace and faced him,

"Don't say that nobody would care if something happened to you, cause I would care." She looked at him dead in the eye. Her gaze was so strong that Chat couldn't even make a sarcastic comeback, he just stared at her, just then noticing how close together they were.

He noticed that her cheeks were covered in tears, so he used his naked hand to wash away a tear, which only brought back more, so Chat got her closer to his chest again, this time lying down on the bed,

"Do you hear that?" He whispered hoarsely,

"What?" She asked in a broken sigh

"My heart is beating, it's telling you I'm alive, nothing terrible happened to me, I'm here." He felt and heard her sigh. She placed her hand around his waist and hugged him tightly, causing him to grunt in pain, so Marinette loosened her hold on him. When she did, he felt a void in his heart so he took her hand to put it back on its place.

He couldn't understand why, but being around her made him feel complete, and being away from her hurt him more than the bruises he had gotten. Yet he mentally slapped himself erasing the complacent smile from his face. He couldn't think like that, he loved Ladybug, and it didn't matter if she wasn't talking to him anymore, he still loved her!

But then, why did Marinette's company feel so warm, it felt as if she was meant to be there, between his arms.

"Chat..." Marinette whispered in a tiny voice.

"Mh?" He looked down at her.

"Let me tend to your bruises," He let out a long sigh and loosened his grip around her, but it took Marinette a minute to let go. In fact, it seemed to Chat that she held on tighter before fully releasing him.

She sat up wiping a few tears with her hand and straightening herself, Chat on the other hand sat up with a little more effort.

"Give me your hand," she held her hand for him, and he placed his naked palm on hers, "How did you manage to take off the glove without taking off your ring?"

"Magic," He sang matter-of-factly making Marinette smile, though her smile didn't reach her eyes. She examined the hand and then applied an icy cream before wrapping the wrist with a bandage.

"Done!" She proclaimed when she was satisfied with her job. "Now give me your foot." She held out her hand for his foot, but when he took off his boot she immediately put her hand on her nose, "oh my gosh, Chat! Your feet smell like cheese!"

"Don't look at me, that's Plagg's fault!" He defended himself, "He's the one that eats that smelly cheese all the time!" She looked at him in disbelief but resigned to her fate. She took a deep breath and held it in, then took his foot and got to work. Chat squinted at her, "It can't be that bad!"

"Well then, you wrap it up!" She told him letting go of the foot and letting out her breath. Chat tried to finish up the wrapping, but his bruised hand wouldn't let him, so Marinette had to finish it up anyway. She then stood on her knees and started to remove the hair from Chat's forehead using a wet cloth to clean the blood.

"Well, you were right about something," She sat and started to look for something in the first aid kit, "It's just a scratch, let me just put some ointment and a Band-Aid. You should be good as new," She smiled still not looking at him, so when she motioned to apply the ointment on his forehead he held her wrist forcing her to look at him,

"I promise nothing bad is going to happen." He started smiling at her, to which she just nodded and continued working on the bandage.

"You can't promise that..."

"Marinette, do you trust me?" She stopped working and looked at him,

"You know I do."

"Then believe me when I tell you, I can take care of myself, and I know that whenever I can't I'll have _you_ to watch my back,"

"Just as long as you keep your shoes on," She stared at him with a smile on her eyes.

"You mean _this_ shoe?" He picked his boot from the floor and shoved it at Marinette, who started screaming for him to stop, but she was laughing, finally!

"You did it Chat," She said while holding her belly from laughing, "You made me laugh."

"No, you made _me_ laugh, I... I've had a rough couple of days and it's nice just to hang out with you," She smiled at him, honestly this time, but then she noticed that the wound on his forehead was starting to bleed again,

"Let me finish with that," she pointed to his forehead and stood on her knees to put the Band-Aid in place. When she was still working, Chat winced in pain and looked up to her, only to find out how close together they were again, but this time it was different, it was as if something was pulling them closer together, and a part of him wanted to close the space between them. A part of him wanted to taste her rosy lips, but another part of him knew that he shouldn't. So he didn't.

o0o

That night, for the first time for what felt like ages, instead of seeing the lifeless face of the Akuma victim, all he could think about was Marinette's rosy cheeks and the way her lips matched with them. Her lips, he probably stared at them for longer than he should have, because now, Adelynn Mason was no longer the reason why he couldn't sleep.

_**But why if my heart is elsewhere** _

_**I feel warmth in my soul?** _

_**A thrill that brings me happiness.** _


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

_**Portant je le ressens** _

_**Ce tourbillon de sentiments** _

_**Qui nous emporte au firmament** _

_**Dans le soleil et dans le vent** _

_**Comme une chance unique** _

_**Un tournoiement magique** _

The next morning Marinette woke up with a start, knowing what she had to do. Transforming into her alter ego, she grabbed her yo-yo and called the one person she longed to see the most.

It was early in the morning, that time when the sky is gray but the sun isn't out yet, but there he was, jumping around the city heading towards the _arc de Triomphe_.

"My Lady," Chat yawned landing on the huge monument, "Why did you need me so early?"

Before saying anything else, Ladybug ran towards him to hug him. At first, he was shocked, he wasn't expecting such a warm gesture from his lady, but he didn't argue, instead, he enjoyed the moment.

"I don't know what this is about, but I like it," he joked hugging her back.

"I'm sorry Chat," she whispered on his chest.

"You're sorry? About wha—" She cut him off

"It was unfair of me to blame you for Adelynn's death, it wasn't—" He quickly caught on to what she was saying and cut her off.

"No, my Lady, _I_ am sorry! You were right, I'm faster, I should have caught her—"

"No Chat, neither of us could have caught her, we— we gave our best! And yet we failed, but we tried, and I— I can't blame you, it's really nobody's fault."

"It is, it's Hawk Moth's fault." The somber sound of his voice made Ladybug break the embrace and look at him in the eye.

"What does he—"

"He was the one who Akumatized her, he is the one to blame, and I'm gonna make sure he pays for everything he's done," he said clenching his fists.

"Maybe, but assigning the blame to another person won't take away the fact that— we failed, Chat." She hugged herself and looked away. "It doesn't matter who's fault it is— the point is, we failed." Chat looked at her in disbelief, unsure of what to do or say. "But we're not giving up," she continued in a soft voice, "We won't let this happen again, we'll be extra careful and make sure people are safe."

"What if we fail again?" He asked apprehensively.

"Then we'll have each other," she smiled warmly at him and he returned the gesture. "Pound it?" She held out her fist, making him smile even more.

"Pound it!"

As they locked eyes with each other they noticed a streak of orange in the sky. The sun was coming out, and the city was starting to wake up. They sat together on the edge of the monument, observing the spectacle of a new day beginning. At some point, Ladybug put her head on Chat's shoulder but the gesture made him flinch a little. Soon Marinette remembered that he was still wounded from his fall the previous day, but Ladybug wasn't supposed to know that.

"Are you alright, Chat?" He took his hand and placed it on his lap sighing and smiling at her.

"Just a little scratch from yesterday, turns out not all cats land on their feet!" He laughed nervously.

"Is it bad? I can heal you if—" She motioned to grab her yo-yo, but Chat stopped her.

"If you do, you'll have to leave soon, and— honestly having you around is more comforting than a healthy wrist."

"Are you stupid or something?" She raised a questioning eyebrow at him.

He laughed "just, don't do it just yet, and stay a little longer," she smiled sat next to the giant dork she called friend, this time being careful not to hurt him again.

"Chat, did you eat breakfast," She asked after a moment of silence.

"You called me so early I didn't even brush my teeth,"

"Yeah, I can see that," she joked, "but look, Andre is here,"

"Are you suggesting we have ice cream for breakfast?" Ladybug's stomach answered for her with a growl to which Chat laughed, but then his stomach growled as well. A little bit embarrassed, Chat used his baton to help themselves down from the monument where they had been sitting, paying no attention to Ladybug's giggles.

They met Andre in the middle of the sidewalk, he gave Ladybug a mint chocolate chip ice cream and Chat had strawberry and blueberry. They eat their ice creams with protesting stomachs but soaring hearts.

o0o

The days passed by without her noticing, and before she knew, Marinette noticed there were posters posted all around the school. When she asked Alya about it she said, "The senior kids are having a party to celebrate their graduation, a prom. The party it's going to be at _le Grand Paris,_ but don't worry about it, we're far from being seniors."

"Don't they have a couple of months until they graduate?" Marinette asked picking up her lunch tray,

"More like a couple of weeks, it's June, remember?" She didn't. These last couple of months had been exhausting for her. Keeping her two lives on point was not an easy feat. She wondered how Chat was able to do it, he always looked so relaxed and didn't seem to miss out on anything.

"Don't look now," Alya elbowed Marinette, "But Kagami is over there, talking to Adrien," She motioned to the couple chatting by the entrance door.

"So?" Marinette answered nonchalantly.

"So? Kagami doesn't attend this school."

"I mean yeah, but she likes Adrien, and Adrien likes her back, it's not like it's the first time she has come."

"I'm so proud of you, girl," They talked as they sat on an empty table, "You said you were over Adrien, and you truly are!"

"Adrien is a good friend, but now I see, that's all we'll ever get to be," Marinette shrugged. Then, Nino and Adrien came to sit with them holding their food trays.

"Dude, she didn't ask you, she ordered you!" Nino argued as he took a seat next to Alya.

"She didn't order me to—" Adrien answered.

"Who forced him to what?" Alya intervened.

"Kagami _invited_ me to go to the graduation party." He overemphasized the word invited.

"No, she didn't!" Nino explained, "She said, and I quote, 'There's a party at this hotel and you'll be coming with me,' then she handed you the ticket and left,"

"She was in a hurry," Adrien defended

"She didn't wait for you to answer though,"

"It's just a party, Nino, I might as well go with her,"

"Doesn't sound like she forced him to me," Alya said, although she was looking at Marinette, who was simply eating her lunch and listening to the exchange before her.

"Well, she didn't ask either," Adrien rolled his eyes at Nino's comment

"I didn't know Kagami was a senior," Marinette intervened swallowing a bite of her meal.

"She's not," Adrien answered, "But you don't have to be a senior to go, you just need the tickets, and to get the tickets you need to attend this school, so I'm guessing she bought them using my name or something,"

"Why would she want to go to that party? She doesn't look like a party person to me," Alya questioned, but Adrien just shrugged,

"She didn't give him time to answer if he wanted to go or not, did you think he'd have time to ask why she wanted to go?" Nino huffed. Was it her imagination, or was Nino a bit more irritated than he should have?

"Dude, it's just a party, I've been to parties with Kagami before, it's really not a big deal," But everyone knew it was a big deal because everyone knew that Kagami was crazy about Adrien.

Later that day when Marinette walked out of her class, eager to go home and sleep for as long as she could, she was yawned and stretched her arms when she bumped into something or more like, someone.

"Careful, Mamamarinette?" Luka smiled down at her.

"Luka? What are you doing here?" Marinette asked nervously.

"I go to school here?" He raised an eyebrow

"You do? I mean, you do! Right! I forgot!"

"This is my last year actually, that's probably why we haven't bumped into each other that much before," He giggled

"Ah, sorry about that—" she nibbled her nails a little, why was she always bumping into Luka? Literally.

"It's alright, I'm used to it." Marinette was even more embarrassed now, how could she be so careless? "Actually, I'm glad I found you, there's something I'd like to ask,"

"Oh, what is it?" Marinette chimed, happy for a change of subject.

"What would you say about going to a party with me?"

"You mean the graduation party?"

"Yeah," He answered simply.

"Why me, though?"

"Because," He shrugged, "I'm leaving town after I graduate, and it might be the last time I get to spend time with my favorite designer," He smiled

"You're leaving? For college?"

"Yeah something like that," he scratched the back of his head,

"Well, if that's the case, then sure! I'd love to go with you!" Marinette smiled broadly, happy to spend time with her friend.

o0o

When the day of the Party arrived, everyone was hyped. It wasn't all the time that their _lycée_ held proms, but it was really exciting to have something to celebrate finishing a stage of their lives.

Adrien and Kagami arrived early to the hotel, wearing matching black, red and white outfits, though Kagami's outfit was more of a traditional kimono than a western dress. They started dancing to a cheerful song that was playing on the background, and even though Kagami wasn't much of a dancer, she seemed to be having fun.

A few moments later, Marinette and Luka arrived. They seemed to be laughing about something and enjoying themselves. Marinette caught Adrien's eye, not only because she was wearing a beautiful pink dress but because she had her hair down. Adrien loved it when Marinette had her hair down.

"Adrien, could we talk for a moment?" Kagami said noticing how Adrien's gaze was wandering around the room.

"Uhm? Sure! What is it?"

"Not here, let's go somewhere more private," She linked arms with him and lead him outside of the ballroom into a corridor where just a few people were gathered. In fact, it was practically empty.

"I've been meaning to ask you, why did you want to come to this party? You don't even go to our school, and you're not a senior, plus you don't even like parties,"

"I wanted to talk to you," She answered looking at him straight in the eye.

"Oh, but you didn't have to—"

"I like you."

Adrien was left speechless for a moment, he already knew that Kagami held feelings for him, but he didn't like to think about it, because there was only one answer he could ever give, and she wouldn't like it.

"Kagami—"

"You said you needed time to sort things out with someone else," she continued, "and I'm waiting for you Adrien, how much longer will you have me wait? I know you like me too,"

He took a deep breath, "Kagami," he scratched the back of his head, "It's complicated—" he mumbled, but then continued loud and clear, "I do like you, you're an amazing girl, and any guy would be glad to be with you—" Adrien hadn't noticed, but Kagami was moving each time closer to him, to the point when she was just about to lock her lips with his. When Adrien looked down and saw how close to him she was, and how her eyes were closed, he sighed and looked the other way. Kagami noticed quickly and stepped away from him.

"You still haven't changed your mind,"

"I'm sorry Kagami, but I don't think I ever will," Adrien explained with a tone of sadness.

"You really hurt me, Adrien,"

"I know, but I can't lie to you. You're still my friend," He smiled awkwardly, but she just huffed, turned the other way and started to walk away. "Wait, Kagami, we can still enjoy the party, can't we?" He stopped her holding her shoulder.

"I think it's better if I just go," she stated without looking back. She shook off Adrien's grasp and continued to walk away leaving Adrien stranded in the corridor.

"Well, that was rough." A voice came from the door behind Adrien, the one that led to the ballroom.

"How long have you been there?"

"Enough," I answered.

"I don't want to talk about it, Alba." He sighed crossing his arms in his chest,

"You don't have to, but there's no reason to let a good party go to waste, would you like to dance with me?" I extended a hand for him, he smiled bitterly but linked his arm with mine.

"What are you doing here anyway?" He asked as we entered the ballroom,

"Chaperoning," I answered simply as the song shifted to a slower one, he put his hands around my waist and me around his shoulder to start dancing.

"Chaperoning? Everyone here is older than you, who are you Chaperoning?"

"Well, I'm not really chaperoning, but he is," I motioned to a corner of the room, where a tall dark-haired man stood looking intently at us.

"Professor LeBeau?" He seemed confused at first, but then his mouth turned into an "o" as he seemed to understand.

"I came because I wanted to spend some time with him. But I think I didn't think it through. Imagine the scandal, a teacher and a student," I giggled, but I noticed that he wasn't listening anymore. "So, when I noticed we couldn't dance together, I started to wander around people's minds just to kill time. Turns out more people than you think would love to be dancing with someone else," He still wasn't listening, so I followed his gaze to see exactly what I expected to see, "You know, some girls would find it rude if you're dancing with them while looking at someone else,"

He seemed to snap out of some sort of trance and finally said, "what? Yeah, you two would make a nice couple,"

"How long are you going to pretend you don't care about Marinette?" I taunted him,

"I'm not pretending I don't care for Marinette, I care for her a lot. She is one of my best friends,"

"You know what I mean," He frowned at me when suddenly, a loud crash and a loud voice came from the door,

"Is this the one you love more than me, Adrien?" An akumatized person opened her way through the crowd of people and pointed at Adrien and me with her sword. Adrien and I looked at each other to see that his hands were still on my waist and mine on his shoulders. We pulled away from each other abruptly,

"Kagami? No, this is Alba, she's just a friend!"

"Is that what you say to everyone? You're just a player! You think you can have any girl you'd like just because you're a model? Think again!" She then used her sword to cut the music cables and break all the lamps, causing all the people to run away In a panic. It was then that Adrien noticed that I wasn't standing next to him anymore.

"Alba?" He called my name, but no answer came.

"And just so you know, my name is not Kagami, it's Oni-Chan, and if I can't have you, then no one will!" The voice came from the darkness of the room, but just as I could read thoughts without my transformation, he was able to see perfectly in the dark and he noticed the exact moment when Oni-Chan jumped out of a window dragging me in a cocoon of vines which gagged me, preventing me from calling for help.

"Pretty sure Alba can take care of herself," Plagg said as he came out of Adrien's jacket.

"She better not, if Hawk Moth discovers who she is— Come on Plagg, let's go help her."

Now, let us pause here and go back a couple of minutes before all of this happened.

Luka and Marinette were having the time of their lives. Dancing to the lively songs and laughing at their dancing skills, when a slow song started to play, and the dance became more serious. They locked eyes and got ready to dance. Staring at each other intently Luka started to close the space between them.

At first, Marinette didn't move, but then, for a split second, Chat Noir's face appeared where Luka's had been. The vision faded but she had to shook her head to recover her sensed, startling Luka. But they had been so close, that anyone who looked at them that moment would have thought they actually kissed. If you know what I mean.

"Luka, I can't," She sighed.

"I thought you said you were over Adrien," He questioned,

"I am, but—"

"Does that mean I'm not even your second choice?"

"Luka, you don't deserve to be mine or anyone's second or third choice," Marinette explained putting a hand on his cheek.

"I sort of hoped that you could give _us_ a chance,"

"Luka, I..." Just when she was about to say something else, Oni-Chan made her grand appearance. Marinette took advantage of the chaos and ran away losing Luka on the way.

"What's going on?" Ladybug asked Chat when she reached the top of the hotel, who was searching the city with his baton.

"Apparently, Oni-Chan is back, and she kidnaped Alba,"

"What? If she transforms—"

"She's not that stupid, but if she is in enough danger she could be tempted to,"

"Well, we have to help her, did you see where they went?"

"No need, she's coming back this way, probably looking for that Adrien kid," He explained putting his batton down,

"What did he do?" Chat Noir froze but sighed in relief when Oni-Chan's sword crashed just inches away from where they stood.

"Ladybug and Chat Noir, we meet again!"

"Where is Alba?" Ladybug demanded.

"She's in a place where no one will find her, not you and not Adrien!" Oni-Chan hissed.

"We'll see about that," Chat charged against her and they started to fence. It had been a while since they faced each other when Oni-Chan defeated him, but Chat's powers were growing stronger, and his fencing skills were improving, precisely from practicing with Kagami, which meant he knew all of her tricks and was able to overpower her.

Sadly for him, Oni-Chan's powers had improved as well, they noticed this when Ladybug captured with her yo-yo, but soon after, she disappeared in a flash of light leaving nothing behind, instead they followed another flash of light that appeared in the terrace of the hotel, where Chloe Bourgeois stood sending the Ladybug signal. They saw how Oni-Chan grew vines from her sword and captured Chloe in a cocoon of vines, similar to the one where she captured Alba. She disappeared again in a flash of light.

Suddenly, a small voice came from behind Ladybug and Chat Noir,

"Mishell?"

"You need to come with me, I know where Oni-Chan's hiding place is!" She hurried,

"I'm glad Alba didn't think of transforming!" Chat sighed,

"She's not that stupid!" Mishell defended her owner,

"Did you get any information about her?" Ladybug asked,

"She's the same Oni-Chan you knew, but now she uses an emotional anchor to teleport instead of an antenna, and it triggers when somebody that claims to love Adrien Agreste is near,"

"That's gonna be a lot of people," Chat mumbled to himself, but Ladybug heard,

"It is... It is!" Ladybug exclaimed, "You're brilliant, Chat!"

"Thanks?"

"If you're gonna do that, you're going to need help," Ladybug nodded,

"Chat, you go to Alba, I'll go get us that help," Ladybug exclaimed as she left,

"I didn't know Alba loved me that much," Chat joked with Mishell, but she smiled,

"You have no idea," but as she noticed the concern growing in Chat's mind, Mishell clarified, "Not the kind of love that wants to be in a relationship with you, so don't worry"

"Great! I didn't want to have to break another girls heart," He lamented, truly concerned for Kagami,

"You better brace yourself then, cause Oni-Chan is gathering all the girls that hold feelings for you in a cage,"

"All of them?" Chat's eyes widened as he asked fearfully, "Do fans count?" When Mishell nodded, he moaned, "This might be harder than I thought."

o0o

Ladybug found Chat near the _Pont des Arts_ hidden behind some cars, keeping watch over the akumatized villain. Rena Rouge and Carapace followed behind her.

"Fill me in," Ladybug said to Chat,

"It seems like she has several people trapped in a hanging giant a ball of thorns and vines. She's not here right now, but she teleports back very often, every time with a new person, I've counted 20 so far,"

"Dang, Adrien sure is popular," Carapace exclaimed,

"Most of them are just fans," Ladybug explained, "which leads me to our plan. Lucky Charm!" Ladybug yelled as a red and black foamboard fell into her arms,

"So, what, are we gonna riot her into releasing the prisoners?" Chat stated,

Ladybug ignored him and started to look around, as she saw Chat's staff, a black marker inside a car, and some tape inside another car,

"Actually Chat, that's exactly what we're gonna do," she took the objects and started to explain the plan to her teammates. They all nodded in agreement and went to their positions,

When Oni-Chan came back to her vine prison with a couple more victims, she was distracted by a giant mob of fans coming her way from both sides of the bridge. On top of them, Ladybug held a sign that read 'we love Adrien Agreste.'

"Get back Ladybug, or I'll cut my vine cage and my prisoners will drown in the river," She pointed her sword to the few thick vines holding the entire cage to the bridge.

(Funny that among the people she was trying to drown was the holder of the fish miraculous, though it wasn't that funny cause I wasn't transformed, nor could I transform, but at the very least it was ironic)

Ladybug paid no attention to Oni-Chan's warnings and kept marching forward, leading the crowd, causing her to stay true to her threat and cut the vines that held the prison. But as the prisoners fell to their doom, instead of sinking, the prison started to float, and a green honeycomb pattern covered the surface of the prison. Soon all the branches fell off because of the water and Carapace led his shelter to the shore.

"No!" An enraged Oni-Chan screamed, shooting daggers with her eyes at Ladybug. "You'll pay for this with your miraculous, Ladybug!" She charged at Ladybug, ready to strike her with her sword, but as soon as she touched her the whole crowd disappeared, and instead stood Chat Noir smiling broadly, holding Oni-Chan's sword with his hand, and the sign that Ladybug had been holding with the other.

"Did you enjoy my illusion Oni-Chan?" Rena Rouge asked as she landed next to Chat with Ladybug. Oni-Chan grunted as her sword disintegrated in Chat's hand. A butterfly flew from it and Ladybug caught it, purifying it and then fixing all the damage they had caused. As Oni-Chan transformed back into Kagami, Carapace leaped out of the river into the bridge.

"Pound it?" he started, and they all pound their fists together. But their miraculouses started to beep.

"I'll take Kagami back home," Chat looked back at her with sad eyes, but before he could go, Ladybug held him by the shoulder.

"Chat, can you meet me at the _grand Paris_ after you come back?" He was taken aback at first but then smiled and nodded. Ladybug nodded back and ran after Rena Rouge and Carapace.

Chat took Kagami in his arms. She said nothing, instead, she stared absently at Chat's chest. Chat left her at her house, but soon after she closed the door behind her, someone knocked, it was Adrien.

"Kagami, can we talk?" She shot the door in his face but he kept talking, "I know you're mad at me, and I guess you have a good reason to be— But—" He sighed, "Kagami, I can't reciprocate your feelings. My heart belongs to someone else, and I can't just pretend I feel the same way with you. You are one of my bestest friends, I've learned so much from you and I've had so much fun with you and—"

"Stop," She cut him off swinging the door open, "I don't want to hear you friendzone me again," Adrien was silent, so she continued. "I always thought that you were perfect and that we were meant for each other, but now I can see that we aren't, and you're not the person I thought you were, so it's best we don't see each other anymore."

"What? There's no need for—" He started, but she cut him off again,

"Don't look for me again, and don't call me, I really don't want to see you again," She shot her door one last time, and this time Adrien could hear her steps getting away from the door.

"I really hoped, you'd understand," Adrien mumbled to himself and sighed,

"Cheer up kid, at least Ladybug is waiting for you," He smiled sadly and transforming back into Chat Noir he went to meet with Ladybug.

o0o

In case you were wondering, I reappeared the hotel when Ladybug fixed everything, Gerald or should I say, Professor LeBeau, who had been pacing nervously around the room, came running the moment he saw me, he hugged me and asked if I was alright, but I didn't have time to answer, because soon students started to flood the ballroom again, and we were forced to part ways for the rest of the evening.

Since my own thoughts were too much to bear, I started to wonder around people's minds again. Most of them were still frightened after the attack, but they knew since the beginning that Ladybug would fix everything in the end. I kept pacing around the room until I saw a familiar face,

"Marinette went back home," I told Luka who had been looking for her since the attack began,

"Why didn't she say anything to me?" He started to calm down, but a frown never left his face,

"Her parents called as soon as they heard of the Akuma attack, she's fine," He sighed and leaned next to a window.

"Was it something that I said?" He asked, not exactly to me, so I didn't exactly answer, instead I put a comforting hand on his shoulder and looked out the window, where I saw Chat Noir arrive at his meeting with Ladybug.

o0o

Ladybug wanted to say so many things to Chat Noir, but she couldn't find the words. When she saw him arrive, she remembered what had happened with Luka and how Chat became the only guy she's able to think about these days... but she found that the words got stuck in her throat, even more, when she saw Chat's expression. He looked as if he was about to cry. Probably, this wasn't the right time to speak to him about her feelings.

"Please, don't leave me too," He hugged her tighter.

Ladybug was startled for a moment, but then she settled into the hug, suddenly feeling a rush of emotions overwhelming her. She felt the urge to protect him because she wondered who or what happened to make Chat feel this way. She was also a bit surprised because she had never seen Chat this sad, though she couldn't tell if he was crying, for once she saw him truly upset. She was even afraid to move or say anything that would make him feel worst, also because the ghost of Chat Blanc still haunted her, even though she prevented him from ever happening. She could also feel empathy for him because even if she didn't know what was bothering him, she knew the feeling of needing a hug all too well. And not so low key, she felt desire for him because she suddenly felt an unusual urge to kiss him and stroke his hair, but overall, she felt love. She loved him, she was sure of it now.

Ladybug was so comfortable in the embrace that she was more disappointed than she thought she'd be when Chat broke the hug and clearing his throat asked, "What was it that you wanted to say?" His voice sounded coarse.

Ladybug gave him a sad smile and caressed his cheek with her gloved hand, "Do you want to dance?" His eyes widened in surprise, but then he slid one hand around her waist and held her hand with his other hand. They began to dance to the slow song coming from the party below them, but for them, it was as if they were all alone, It almost felt as if they were flying. They didn't even notice when the people on the terrace started to light fireworks that lighted up the sky as they danced close to each other.

After some time, the song shifted to one that was lighthearted and upbeat. Chat started to spin Ladybug around the dance floor and improvise some moves which made Ladybug laugh, and consequently Chat laughed too. His smile was back, and it would stay that way. Because no matter what had happened before, seeing his Lady laugh would always, always make him smile.

_**Yet I feel it,** _

_**the whirlwind of feelings** _

_**that takes us firmly** _

_**in the sun and the wind** _

_**like a unique chance,** _

_**a magical spin.** _


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

_**C'est fort quand je le vois** _

_**Je veux crier sur tout les toits** _

_**Notre amour qui nous tend les bras** _

_**Mais je sais que je ne dois pas** _

_**Ce n'est pas le moment** _

_**Il faut être patient** _

_**Être patient...** _

"I didn't know you were in love with Adrien," Marinette told Alba one day when they walked home from school.

"What makes you say that?" I asked rubbing my temples.

"The other day, I mean, Oni-Chan captured you along with all the people that Love Adrien," She explained fiddling with her fingers.

"I'm not in love with Adrien, but I do love him to death, just as much as I love _you_ ," I smiled at her before adding, "You must still love Adrien as well, Kagami almost got you too,"

"First of all, no she didn't, and second I do love Adrien, just not that way... Not anymore,"

"Are you sure about that?" I taunted her, massaging a particularly sore spot near my eyebrow,

"I guess he'll always be special to me. He was my first true love after all, but no, I'm not in love with him anymore," She affirmed, and I could see that she was being honest.

"Then why did you ask if I was in love with him? Are you jealous?" I taunted her again,

"I'm not jealous!" She squealed, making people around us turn their gaze in our direction. Noticing she was the center of attention, she shrugged and pulled me by the arm, urging me to keep walking,

"So, you were saying that you were jealous..." I motioned for her to continue, once we were far enough from the staring gazes of strangers,

"I'm not jealous, It's just... It's kind of weird to think of Adrien with someone else," She explained in a more relaxed tone,

"I understand, but if you don't want to be with him anymore, then you should get used to the idea of him being with someone else," I explained trying to hide a smirk. If only she knew...

"I guess..." She sighed with a hint of sadness in her eyes,

"I know it's hard, I mean you were obsessed with him for so long..."

"I wasn't obsessed with him!" She defended herself, but stopped talking when she saw my annoyed face,

"Hello Ma'am, quick question," I call a random passerby, much to Marinette's dismay, "Was Marinette obsessed with Adrien?"

"Yes," She answered without taking her gaze out of her cellphone,

"See? Even the extras know about it,"

"That doesn't prove anything," Marinette crossed her arms and looked away

"Do you want me to ask someone else? Hey Sir..."

"Ok fine!" She interrupted me, "Maybe I was a little bit obsessed with Adrien,"

"More like a lot!" Another passerby said, and I couldn't stop a complacent smile from appearing in my face,

"Ok, how do you do that?" She asked accepting her defeat,

"I didn't plan this if that's what you're asking. Heaven just smiled at me today," I shrugged giggling,

Marinette huffed and started walking faster, making me giggle even harder.

"By the way, my parents are coming home tomorrow," I told her after a few minutes of walking in silence,

"Oh, so you have parents?" She scoffed still not looking at me.

"Yup, a mom and a dad," I showed her with my fingers,

"Good for you."

"I know you're not saying it, but I know that you're dying to know why I've been living by myself for more than a year, if I'm only 17,"

"I honestly don't care."

"Yeah, you do!"

"I don't," She scowled as we reached my place.

"Fine then, I won't tell you. But I don't want to part ways knowing that you're still mad at me. I'm sorry for joking about Adrien, I know it's still a delicate subject for you," She studied me for a moment while I looked at her with pleading eyes

"Fine, I forgive you," She let out with the slightest of giggles, "as long as you promise you won't try anything with him,"

"Anything with him? Please, Adrien is so not my type," I bantered, but then she looked at me with such a cold look that I had to finish, "Fine, I promise I won't try anything with your ex-crush,"

"Alright then, see you tonight." She winked and left in her merry way. That's the defender of Paris, never afraid to put people in their place, but always ready to forgive. I really admire her for that.

o0o

Later that afternoon, as unexpectedly, as usual, Marinette heard a loud knock in her window. Knowing who it was, she rushed to open it with a dashing smile.

"Chat isn't it too early for you to…" Her smile disappeared when she saw that it was someone else trying to come inside her bedroom,

"Sorry to disappoint you dear, but we have a problem," I told her entering the room and starting to pace around it biting my nails.

"What is it, Sirena? Stop biting your nails," she scolded me

"You'll be biting your nails with me once I tell you what happened! Hawk Moth just akumatized My father!"

"Your father? I thought you said he was coming to town tomorrow!"

"Well, that was the plan, but he came earlier than expected and saw me transform and freaked out, and now he's akumatized."

"Well, let's go get him!" She called on Tikki to transform but I grabbed her wrist before she could say the trigger words.

"That'll be a problem, you see, he's a mind reader like me," she didn't seem to understand the implications of the situation, so I continued, "His name is Sleuth, and as soon as he sees you he'll know who you are."

"Does he know about you?" She looked at me with big eyes.

"I don't think so, I rushed out of my room before his transformation was complete, but I heard Hawk Moth talk to him, he seems to know that I was keeping secrets but not _what_ secrets, which is a relief, but still..."

"Well, then we have to find Chat Noir before your dad, or else..." She shook off my grasp and transformed. She used her yo-yo to try to contact Chat but he didn't pick up.

"Maybe he's not transformed, but still, how do you pretend to fight this Akuma, we all have _way_ too many secrets to keep." I could see the wheels turning in her head until the lightbulb turned on.

"Then we'll send him someone that doesn't have that many secrets to keep."

"You're… not serious, are you?" I asked because the sole idea seemed bizarre,

"You go get Chat Noir, I'll go to Master Fu and get the miraculouses."

"Better go as Marinette, if my dad works as I think he does, this Akuma is going to be like a spy… quiet as a mouse, you won't know he's there until it's too late,"

"Good thinking, I'll call you as soon as I have what I need." I nodded and left her house using the window.

I made sure to look around to make sure I wasn't followed, but I could only hope that my father didn't think of looking for me at Marinette's place.

o0o

I found Adrien wandering around the Champs de Mars. He had escaped from his house in his civilian clothes, so I did the only logical thing to do in a situation like this. I jumped from the building where I was standing, took my trident and threw it at him. It went flying a few feet before landing inches from his feet. He shied away without losing his cool.

"Uh, Sirena?" He mumbled before I landed in front of him.

"Sorry Adrien, I needed to call your attention!" I breathed trying to recover from the exertion.

"Did you just try to spear me?" He asked raising a questioning eyebrow,

"Believe me, if I wanted to spear you, you would have a trident on your chest right now."

"You could have screamed my name or something." He sighed drawing the silver trident from the cement floor and examining it, although I couldn't see what was so interesting about it.

"I didn't want to call unnecessary attention," I shrugged,

"Because throwing a trident to a person is the most reasonable option in that case." He mocked me and used the trident to spear the air. "What are you doing transformed anyways? You're not supposed to be seen in public."

"I know, but we have an emergency. There's an Akuma, and you need to come with me."

"All right, let me just transform." He shrugged handing me the trident. He began to look for a place to transform but I stopped him midway,

"No, that's just the thing, you can't let him see you, he's a mind reader, the moment he sees you he'll know who you are and more!" His eyes widened as if his brain finally turned on after a snooze.

"How do you know all that?" I looked to my feet, trying to escape from his questioning gaze.

"He's my dad and it was kind of my fault that he got akumatized," He looked at me with a sympathetical smile, placing a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"Don't worry, we'll bring him back, but…" He rubbed his chin, thinking about something. "How do we fight an Akuma that we have to hide from?"

"Ladybug has an idea, she'll tell you what to do." He smiled with shimmering eyes.

"That's my lady…" But then he looked down again.

"Adrien, we can talk about whatever it is that's bothering you later. But right now we gotta go," He smiled sadly while he still observed the spear in my hands.

"Alright, let's find a better place to transform." We ran and hid behind some bushes when Plagg emerged from his jacket allowing him to transform. As soon as he transformed completely, his baton rang.

" _Chaton_ , Finally," Ladybug exclaimed from the screen, I pushed him aside a bit to get in the camera with him. "Where are you?"

"We're at the Chaps de mars." He answered

"Great! I'll be there in a second." She hanged up. After a few seconds, we saw her swinging through the neighboring buildings until she landed on the floor near the bushes, where we were still hiding.

"Here," She handed him a black jewelry box. When he saw it his eyes widened as he recognized it, "You have to give this to Kagami while I go fetch Chloe."

"What? I thought you said they couldn't use the miraculous again because their identities were compromised…." He thought about it for a microsecond and then exclaimed. "Which is precisely why they should fight the mind reader. Brilliant, my lady!"

"As always," she boasted. "Don't just give it to her though, get her to a safe place and then hand it over, we could be being watched this very moment, we'll meet at the Eiffel tower in 5 minutes."

"Your wish is my command, my Lady." He bowed and she nodded, "As for you Sirena, wait for us at the Eiffel tower, don't let yourself be seen, especially not when we arrive." I nodded and we all went in our separate ways.

o0o

Marinette followed the path to Chloe's hotel. She found her sitting on the terrace with Sabrina. She waited for Sabrina to turn her head around, and when she finally did, she leaped into the terrace. Using her yo-yo she grabbed Chloe and began to run in the other direction despite her protest.

"Hey! Ladybug? Did you just kidnap me! Why is everyone kidnaping me these days?" She squealed,

"Sorry Chloe, but I'm pretty sure you'll like what I have to say." She stopped on top of a building, hiding in the shadow of a Chimney. She let go of her and she turned to see her annoyed.

"You better have a good reason to…"

"We need you to be Queen Bee again." Ladybug explained. She looked at her with wide, "But I guess if you don't want to…"

"I do, I do! But Ladybug, you said I couldn't do it anymore because my identity was not…"

"secret? Well, that's exactly why we need you, this Akuma is a mind reader, he'll know Chat and my identity if he sees us, which is why you're perfect for the job. What do you say?"

"You can count on me, Ladybug!" She said with a fierce look in her eyes.

"Chat Noir and I won't fight alongside you, but don't worry, you'll have a partner with you."

"partner?"

o0o

Meanwhile, Chat Noir found Kagami practicing fencing while her mother sat before her. Chat rushed to where they were and blurted out, "Sorry Tsurugi-san, but I need to borrow your daughter," before grabbing Kagami and jumping to the nearest building, ignoring Tsurugi-san's protests.

"This is becoming a bad habit for you guys," She stared at him with bored eyes. "I'm never going to hear the end of it from my mother,"

"I'm sorry Kagami, but we need you to transform again, I'll explain everything to you on the way, but we need to hurry, come on!" Kagami was surprised by the unexpected proposal, but she nodded and, taking the black box that Chat handed her, transformed into Ryuko.

"What's the plan?" She asked looking at him, who smiled at her for a second. Chat had to admit that seeing Kagami ready to fight made him feel proud, yet at the same time it made him feel a void in his stomach,

"Come on, I'll explain on the way." They began to run in the direction of the Eifel Tower, and when the four of them arrived I appeared in front of them, much to Ladybug's dismay.

It turned out both girls thought I was the Akuma and tried to attack me from different sides, but I was able to predict their thoughts and dodge the attack, making them crash into each other and fall into the floor.

"Is this really the best you could come up with?" I asked Ladybug, looking at the pathetic duo struggle to stand up. "I could predict their attacks even if I wasn't who I am."

"Who are you then?" Ryuko groaned as she finally stood up.

"Someone who is going to teach you how to fight a villain that can read your mind," I said, ignoring Ladybug's murderous glare.

"I thought I told you to stay hidden," She huffed and I saw her tighten her jaw,

"Yes, but then I figured, you're about to send two unprepared girls into a battlefield with a villain they won't be able to defeat without the proper knowledge." I turned my gaze to see the two novice superheroines who studied me intently trying to figure out who, or what, I was, "Look, you don't need to know who I am, all you need to know is that I'm a mind reader as is the Akuma you're about to fight. I can teach you to fight him, but you need to focus and work together, even if you really can't stand each other."

They looked at each other not recognizing who they were. Which is precisely the effect of the miraculous glamour.

"Listen carefully, to fight him you must be in sync with each other but you can't be thinking your next steps, don't think, act, a single thought and you're done for." I continued and they nodded in agreement. "Feel each other, and you'll defeat him. You'll find the Akuma somewhere at the Champs de Mars." I turned away to leave, but I turned to face them again. "Oh, and by the way, in case you think of telling someone you saw me, just know that I can erase your memory, make you act like an animal of my choice and expose your darkest secrets to the world; so please, don't." I smiled at them and left.

"Who was that?" Queen Bee asked Ladybug and Chat Noir as I disappeared from their vision.

"Doesn't matter, but she's right and you must do as she says." Ladybug said pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Now go, and make us proud, our beloved children." Chat Noir dismissed them with a dramatic voice. They nodded with a fierce expression and set off in their mission. "Do you really think this is a good idea?" He asked Ladybug,

"Nope,"

"Good, I'd be concerned if you did." He looked at the girls disappear among the trees. "So, what now, my lady."

"We wait." Ladybug answered as she sat down with her legs crossed on the edge of the Eiffel tower.

"We wait?" He repeated looking down at her. "You mean we do nothing?"

"There's not much we can do until they call us and even then, I'll only have to catch the Akuma." Chat Noir fiddled with his hands, pacing nervously until he decided to take a seat next to her.

"This is a strange feeling… There's an Akuma on the loose and yet we're just here, sitting, while they do all the dirty job. This must be like everyone else feels,"

"Sometimes we have to delegate, and sometimes that means the best we can do is wait."

"Couldn't we at least try to go an find him?" He pleaded; but Ladybug shook her head. "Come on, we can't just seat here!"

"We must if we want to protect our identities, a single look from that Akuma and he'll know who we are, and we can't have that," She shrugged, making Chat Noir sigh understanding that Ladybug was right.

"At least the sunset is pretty," He noticed looking at the dark orange sky. After a few minutes of silence, he huffed, "I feel so useless!"

"Do you have to keep complaining? You're making waiting more and more unbearable,"

"Well, how are you so calm?" He asked while the sound of an explosion rumbled in the background,

"This all just got me thinking... What would life be after we defeat Hawk Moth? We'll have nothing to do," Ladybug commented looking absently at the sky,

Chat looked at her frowning and crossed his arms over his knees, "I don't like to think about it,"

"Why not?" She gawked, "I thought you couldn't stand him anymore, and you were counting the minutes until we defeat him,"

"I am, believe me, no one wants to get rid of him as much as I do, but I know that the day we defeat him will also be the day when we'll have to return our miraculous," He sighed,

"I hadn't thought of that," Ladybug sighed just when a giant gust of wind swept over them, however, they ignored it and continued chatting.

"I know we have to defeat him but the thought of never seeing you again is too painful to bear," Chat told her, then looked at Ladybug in the eyes, getting closer to her. She closed her eyes and started to draw near him as well. Ladybug could feel Chat's breath in her cheeks when her yo-yo started to ring. Ladybug jumped from her sitting place to answer the call, but Chat didn't notice that she left soon enough and fell face-first on the metal floor.

"Ryuko, give me good news," Ladybug asked through the yo-yo,

"Queen Bee paralyzed him, we already removed the akumatized object, but we haven't released the Akuma, we're keeping it for you,"

"Great timing," Chat grumped rubbing his chin and getting up from the floor, but if Ladybug heard him, she chose to ignore him.

"Good job, girls, release the Akuma, I'll be there in a moment," She turned to Chat and said to him, "I told you they would make it!"

"No, you said we didn't have a choice," Chat groaned still crossed at Ryuko for ruining the moment.

"Whatever, come on, we have an Akuma to catch." Taking her yo-yo, she leaped from the Tower and started to run in the way the explosions had come from,

"No, _you_ have an Akuma to catch," He said to himself before leaving the Eiffel Tower

o0o

They hadn't reached the spot where Queen Bee and Ryuko were, when they saw the black butterfly coming their way. Ladybug caught it without hesitation, but they were met with the worried face of the two novice heroes once they arrived at the designated place,

"Ladybug, the Butterfly escaped! We tried to catch it but we were afraid it would infect us or something," Queen Bee explained frantically,

"Calm down, Queen Bee. I got it!" Ladybug released the purified butterfly.

"So, tell us, how did you defeat a guy that could read your minds?" Chat asked while Ladybug finished fixing everything with her yo-yo.

"It was hard at first, but Chloe and I managed to do what that weird lady told us,"

"Yeah, it wasn't easy, but Kagami and I worked out our differences. We managed to distract him and paralyze him."

"So... you guys know your identities?" Ladybug asked, joining them once everything was repaired

"Oh yeah, the creepy guy told us, though a little heads up would have been nice," Queen Bee stared coldly at Ladybug and Chat Noir.

"No kidding, I've always hated Chloe, no offense," Ryuko explained

"None taken, I hate you too, especially since you kidnap me and all." Chloe huffed. "Anyways, that weird lady was right... will you tell us who she is? I'm utterly curious," Chloe asked hopefully,

"I'm afraid she is someone that you shouldn't have seen in the first place. You have to forget she exists, or else it can be really dangerous for all of us," Ladybug started,

"Yeah, she's also very powerful, if you can't keep your mouth shut about her, you can be sure she'll do to you as she threatened," Chat warned.

"But, you would protect us, won't you guys?" Chloe giggled nervously,

"If you tell others about her?" Chat stated, "No, we won't, that weird Lady is on our side, and she warned you not to do it,"

"And now we're warning you too." Ladybug finished, standing before them. "Thank you so much for stepping up when we needed you. Don't worry we will make sure to protect you if Hawk Moth ever tries to come back at you." Ladybug motioned for them to return their miraculous, they detransformed and handed them over with sad expressions. "And as a thank you for what you did today we'll give you these," Ladybug handed each of them a small red and black paper that she got from her yo-yo, each with a single phone number written.

"Are these...?" Chloe's eyes shimmered,

"It's a direct line you can use to contact us if you're ever in danger, but it's only for emergencies,"

"Thank you, Ladybug," Kagami bowed, "Chat Noir," She bowed again before him, making Chat's heart sink,

"I gotta tell everyone about this!" Chloe beamed,

"If you do, we'll send za weird lady to you," Chat started squinting at her, and Chloe's smile turned into a frown, "Don't share it with anyone else, will ya?"

"Ugh! Fine!" Chloe huffed. Kagami tugged Chloe's sleeve and hinted for them to leave, meanwhile, Chat and Ladybug turned to check on the Akumatized man, but he wasn't where they had last seen him, In fact, he was nowhere to be seen.

"Where did he go?" Chat asked, looking around to try to any trace of him.

"He must have left when we were talking," Ladybug guessed and motioned for them to leave, "He should be fine, right?"

What they didn't notice was that when they were talking with Queen Bee and Ryuko, a mysterious person lurked into the shadows and dragged the man out of their reach. She pulled him into an alleyway despite his protest and faced him.

"Do you know who I am?" She asked the tall tan man in an attempt to calm him down,

"Alba?" He began motioning frantically, making a lock of the curly hair that I inherited, fall on his forehead, "Of course I know who you are, you're my daughter! why are you dressed like that?"

"Dad, you shouldn't have seen me, it's supposed to be a secret," She mumbled fiddling with her braid,

"How long have you been this... person?" He pointed at her,

"More than a year now," I sighed, "My name is Sirena, I'm a mind reader,"

"How much do you know, then?" He asked after a moment of silence,

"Everything, for instance, I know that you and mom work for a private detective's agency and that the reason we came here was for you to find out who Hawk Moth is."

"You've known all this time?" I nodded, "Why didn't you tell us?"

"I couldn't, if I did, I'd lose my miraculous, besides, I'm helping you find Hawk Moth, my job is to look for him in the night, without ever being seen,"

"So? Did you find out who he is already?" He urged her,

"Well, I found out who he's not," I shrugged, but then he hugged me tightly, out of the blue,

"I'm just happy you're okay," I smiled on his broad chest, "We shouldn't have left you all alone,"

"I know you guys are always around and I always know where you are. I've even used some of the information you've collected in my own searches,"

"Still, we're not there for you," He lamented, "Come," He motioned for me to follow him out of the alley, "Your mom should be waiting for us, she'll be surprised once she finds out about this,"

"Yeah, it's just... You know what? I've been dying to show you a new song I wrote,"

"Oh, really? Let's hear it," And with tears starting to sting in my eyes, I began to chant.

o0o

Marinette went home that night thinking about what Chat Noir had said. What would happen once they've defeated Hawk Moth? She wouldn't have to be Ladybug anymore and Chat wouldn't have to be Chat Noir. That meant that whenever they had to say goodbye to Hawk Moth, it would be goodbye to Ladybug and Chat Noir as well.

"Tikki, what will happen when we defeat Hawk Moth?" Marinette asked biting the pen she was using to write,

"There'll be a celebration in all of Paris! The citizens will be at peace and..."

"No, but, I mean to _us_ , you and me." Marinette looked at her from her desk where she was sitting working on some homework,

"Well, I guess since our work together is done..."

"You'll go back into the miraculous box, won't you? I knew it!"

"Relax Marinette, we don't know that yet," She put a comforting hand on Marinette's cheek, "Some Ladybugs keep their miraculous for life, while others decide to return them, others are corrupted and their miraculous has to be taken away... every case is different, the truth is, we won't know until we get there,"

"Fine, but... Isn't it too hard to say goodbye?"

"It always is, Marinette, it never gets easier. I should know, I've had to say goodbye many times, but it helps to know that the other person is doing well, even if you're not around to see it," Tikki sighed remembering some of her most beloved previous ladybugs.

"Okay but what about Chat Noir? I don't know why but I've come to terms with having to say goodbye to you, but Chat... I can't imagine not seeing him anymore,"

"I guess that's a little bit more complicated, but there's no need to worry about it, you should enjoy what you have now, and leave the future where it belongs"

"Did your previous Ladybugs have a Chat Noir?" Marinette asked ignoring Tikki's wise words and propping herself on her _chaise lounge_

"Yes, you can't separate destruction from creation," She landed on Marinette's abdomen,

"And did they know their identities?"

"Yes," She answered simply, resting her head on her hands

"Okay, but did they always know?"

"Every story is different Marinette, I can tell you what others in your position have done, but eventually you will have to come up with your own conclusions,"

"I love him Tikki, that's all I know," Marinette sighed staring absently at the ceiling

"That's enough for now,"

And it _was_ enough. Marinette's love was strong and all-consuming, she knew that admitting her feelings to Chat Noir would mean everything to her, and she also knew that Chat would return the feeling. She knew that confessing her feelings would mean a huge change to the dynamics of their relationship, it would most certainly distract her from her more urgent priorities, yet she couldn't help but wonder, would he be as loyal to Marinette as he was to Ladybug?

Their love was stronger than anything they could imagine, but she had to be patient. Because now was probably not the time to change who they were, not now that they were so close to finding Hawk Moth, not now when she had school to think about, not now when she could put him and their loved ones at risk if Hawk Moth found out anything that he could use against them. If she ever wished for something to happen between them, she would have to wait, at least until they had captured Hawk Moth and he wasn't able to hurt anyone.

_**It's strong when I see it,** _

_**I want to shout out on all the rooftops!** _

_**Our love that reaches us!** _

_**But I know I shouldn't.** _

_**It is not the moment.** _

_**We need to be patient...** _

_**Be patient!** _


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

_**Je sais qu'un jour on s'envolera** _

_**Car mon amour, un jour tu verras** _

_**Qu'après de moi tu deviendras toi** _

"I have bad news for you," Sirena told Ladybug and Chat, the night after Ryuko and Queen Bee defeated the Sleuth as they sat together on the _arc de triumphe_. "I went to visit every person from the Akuma victim list and none of them seem to have any connection with Hawk Moth,"

"Are you sure?" Ladybug asked dangling her feet on the edge of the structure,

"Very sure, every name is checked, you can take a look at my notes if you want to," I answered, handing her my tablet,

"I honestly thought that this plan would work," Chat mumbled,

"Well, we need a new plan," Ladybug stated, returning my tablet after giving it a quick look,

"We can't go back to checking every person in Paris, can we?" Chat placed a hand on his chin as if thinking of something

"Let's not," I pleaded, "There's gotta be another way,"

"I don't think we have to," Ladybug started as if a bulb had gone off in her brain, "Hawk Moth must have a range if we can localize the victims maybe we can come up with a location from where the attacks are coming,"

"But all the victims live in different sides of the city, some of them don't even have a permanent residence here," My head flooded with the information I had gathered over months, and it was becoming harder to think clearly, especially this late at night,

"But we don't need that, do we?" Ladybug smirked, and Chat's eyes glowed with understanding,

"All we need is the place where they were akumatized! brilliant My Lady," Chat chimed,

"I'm guessing you don't carry a map with you, am I right, Sirena?" Ladybug looked at me

"Do I look like I'm eighty-four to you? I only have the one on my tablet," I showed it to her and we began to mark a ruff location of where the attacks had been and, except for StarTrain, we came up with a nice range surrounding the Eiffel Tower,

"According to this, Hawk Moth could be hiding around this general area," Ladybug pointed in the map, "I wish we had more information though, we could come up with something more precise,"

"That's going to be tricky anyway, a lot of people live around there, plus there are thousands of tourists every day. Are you sure you'll be fine?" Chat pointed out. I remembered that he should have a better knowledge of the place, since his house was inside the range, pretty close to the center, actually.

"Don't worry! You guys focus on protecting Paris, I'll focus on finding Hawky." I pointed at me with my thumb.

We continued to work on a more precise strategy until we noticed how late it was getting. Ladybug and I went home together, but Chat decided to stay a little longer, and after he was sure that we were both long gone he said,

"Plagg claws out,"

"Nice view," Plagg exclaimed as the transformation fell. Plagg took a seat on Adrien's shoulder to enjoy the landscape, "But why did you detransform? I've always known you were a little up the hole, but this is a whole other kind of crazy," He said lazily,

"I just wanted to talk to someone,"

"My, my, what a surprise, Adrien wants to talk, no, wait, let me guess, you want to talk about Ladybug," Plagg said sitting against Adrien's neck,

"No," he exclaimed pretending to be offended, "I wanted to tell you something about Marinette," Plagg facepalmed, though Adrien didn't notice.

"Oh screw it, what did she do now?"

"I've been thinking, things are going pretty well with Ladybug, and apparently Marinette and Luka are a couple now, so I was thinking that Ladybug is truly the one for me, don't you agree, Plagg?" He sighed with half a smile,

"Are you trying to convince me, or yourself?" Plagg was playing carelessly with one of Adrien's locks as if it was a ball of yarn,

"Why would I try to convince myself?" Adrien tried to look at Plagg making him stop playing with his hair, his only entertainment

"Because out of the two of us you're the one that cares," Plagg answered now annoyed that he didn't have anything to fiddle with,

"You know what, Plagg? you're really not helpful sometimes," Adrien faced his annoyed kwami,

"Listen, you need to stop worrying about these things, Marinette, Ladybug, I honestly don't see the difference," And he honestly didn't,

"Well I love Ladybug, and Marinette is just a friend,"

"Yeah, yeah, so you keep saying. But if you want to keep whining about that, give me some cheese and I'll listen to all your rambles,"

o0o

That was the way Adrien spent the next months, telling himself that Ladybug was the one he loved while still maintaining his visits to Marinette and learning more about her every time, like the fact that she and Luka weren't actually a couple and that she was a terrible loser when it came to video games. This information had the power to confuse him every now and again, but he was clinging to the hope that he and Ladybug were meant to be together.

But it turned out he wasn't the only one having problems organizing his life those days, in fact, other people were having a much worse time, which made Paris the perfect place for villains like Hawk Moth, feeding on negative emotions.

Late that winter, somewhere in the city, there was a college student from a university nearby. He was struggling with a math equation and after many tries, he convinced himself that he couldn't do it. He threw his notebook, pencils, and materials away. He didn't feel like trying anymore, but how could he become an engineer if he couldn't solve a simple mathematical equation? How could he find a job? How would he find a home? How would he earn a living?

Suddenly he found it harder to breathe, the what-ifs began to flood his mind, tears started to roll down his cheeks, the void in his stomach began to grow and his body began to tremble. Isolation, abandonment, his parents, his future children, his nonexistent girlfriend, his future... the bright future he envisioned... He couldn't control it, it was all falling out of his hands,

"Sightseer," A dark voice was heard on his mind when a black butterfly made its way inside of his smartwatch which was marking an abnormal heart rate, "There's no need to worry about what the future might hold, I give you the power to see what the future has in store for you. As a reward, you will bring me Ladybug and Chat Noir's miraculous!"

Sightseer's breathing began to normalize, and with a steady voice he said, "Thank you, Hawk Moth, I'll do as you please." The black cloud of smoke covered him as he transformed into a new villain,

o0o

When Chat Noir and Ladybug went to the spot where the usually met for night patrols, a mysterious figure stood near the edge of the arc de Triomphe. He had a purple cloak flying in the cold late winter air, it was decorated with all kinds of clocks, he had a cane attached to his hand which he used to stay balanced.

"You're right on time, Ladybug, Chat Noir," The figure spoke, without exposing his face to the light,

"Who are you?" Ladybug asked although she couldn't see the entirety of his figure,

"My name is Sightseer, and the stars tell me that you're about to give me your miraculous!" He exclaimed, standing his ground, "I have seen this day thousand times and the days after it, and now I have the power to bend it at my will and make you give me your miraculous for Hawk Moth!" He sneered, "Never again will I fear the future, because now, only I control it!" He began to laugh hysterically,

"Then I guess you've seen how we defeat you every time," Ladybug taunted him

"Yes, but now I know how to defeat you!" He screamed and charged towards them. Chat was about to hit him with his baton, but Sightseer opened a portal and disappeared in it, only to appear behind Chat a second later, hitting him hard on the head and tackling him and pinning him unto the floor with his foot. But Ladybug was faster and tackled Sightseer with a mighty kick but when she tried to capture the villain with her yo-yo, he disappeared into another portal, making Ladybug catch Chat instead, who was standing behind where the villain had been.

"Hey, my Lady, I'm not the bad guy here!" He yelled at her trying to disentangle himself from the lasso,

"Are you sure about that? You're the one with the bad jokes," she giggled, but released him nonetheless,

While she was still untangling Chat Noir, two portals opened, one in front and another behind them. From the one behind them, Sightseer appeared and pushed them into the other portal,

"Why don't you take a look at your future!" He laughed hysterically until the portal closed and every sign of him disappeared.

They found themselves in the same monument where they had been before, but something was odd. The buildings were of a different color, the Eifel tower was changing colors every few seconds, and the city as a whole was more illuminated. But what caught their eyes the most was the presence of what seemed like two superheroes moving in the distance, one of them was flying and the other was moving faster than anything that they've ever seen, but they seemed to be engaged in conversation,

Ladybug and Chat stared at each other, confused by the strange sight,

"Are we gonna follow them?" Chat asked his Lady,

"Of course we're gonna follow them," She answered already throwing her yo-yo to the nearest tall building.

They followed them from a distance, especially since the strange figures were much faster until they reached a certain rooftop they had never seen before. It was a building, but it was very near to the outskirts of the city, and it seemed to be very old and in need of repairs, it seemed to be part of a very poor neighborhood. But what caught their attention were the superheroes, they were Ladybug and Chat Noir, but they seemed... different, taller, perhaps even stronger. They stood silently watching a couple of older looking superheroes from behind a chimney.

"This is all your fault!" The older Ladybug yelled at the older Chat Noir,

"Oh sure, as if I forced you into it," He answered with a snort, though there was a hint of amusement in his voice,

"Well, it's easy for you to say!"

"It's not easy for any of us, but you need to calm down," Older Chat gesticulated with his hands,

"Calm down? I am calm down!" She yelled, but she obviously wasn't calm down.

But as our heroes heard the exchange, a single pigeon passed by, landing on the chimney where young Ladybug and Chat Noir were hiding, and, as you know pigeons are birds, and birds have feathers, and feathers are Chat Noir's mortal enemy. He sneezed so hard that the bird flew off, alerting the older superheroes of their presence. Young Ladybug facepalmed and came out of their hiding spot,

"Hi, um, I'm well, Ladybug and I think we're in some sort of trouble," she stammered while Chat came out of his hiding place rubbing his nose, waving sheepishly at the older superheroes. On their side, the older heroes looked at each other with worried expressions but then seemed to remember something,

"Oh, so this is the day!" Ladybug exclaimed, "Now everything makes sense," She smiled at his Chat Noir and then to the younger superheroes,

"Let me guess," older Chat intervened, "You guys were fighting an Akuma and you got sent into the future?"

"Apparently, how much... in the future are we?" Chat asked,

"I'm guessing about five years," Older Ladybug said, "But don't worry, Sightseer can't go this further into the future, you're safe for now,"

"You know him?" Chat Noir asked, and both older heroes huffed at the same time,

"We've dealt with him hundreds of times," older Chat continued, "He's a very anxious person, and Hawk Moth takes advantage of him, but right now he's seeing a therapist and his anxiety has been improving, so we haven't seen him in ages, but we remember how annoying he was,"

"He can only go into the future, and he has a time limit, but the things he sends through his portal don't, which is why you were sent so far in the future," Older Ladybug added,

"Well, whatever he is, we have to go back to our time and defeat him before he sends something or someone else," young Ladybug pleaded, and older Ladybug smiled at her,

"I think the young Lady is right, Chat, why don't you call our time travel agent while I show these two to a very special place?" Older Ladybug, who now Ladybug noticed had one hair bun instead of two pigtails said as she got closer to them,

"You got it, boss," He winked at her and leaped settling on the roof of the rooftop house that gave entrance to the building,

"You guys follow me," Older Ladybug guided them to the edge of the building and then jumped and entered through a window on the top floor, after a short glance at each other, they followed her into the building.

The apartment where they landed wasn't very well lit, in fact, it was mostly empty, there was no furniture and the walls were dirty and falling off. As soon as they moved inside, and their perspective changed, the whole room shone with Christmas lights, and there was a huge tv on a wall, there were also several puffs and other couches scattered around the room, there was also a marble counter and a corridor, which they guessed, lead to other rooms,

"What do you think?" Older Ladybug asked seating on top of the counter, but the young superheroes were so surprised by the unexpected change that didn't say anything. Older Ladybug giggled, "This is one of Rena's perpetual illusions, you'll learn more about them in a few years,"

"What is this place?" Chat Noir asked as he started to fiddle with some accent pieces that he found on a nightstand

"This is our favorite local superhero hang out place," She explained,

"Your what?" Younger Ladybug screeched,

"Did you think Chat and I were the only heroes in Paris?" Noticing the looks of the younger heroes, Ladybug giggled again and continued, "You'll know more about this in a few years,"

Just then, the older Chat entered through the window, "Bunix isn't picking up," He told his Ladybug,

"Did you try Pegasus?" She asked him, to what Chat nodded,

"He says her race just started, and that it should take him about half an hour to get her here, maybe more,"

"That's too long, there has to be another way," younger Ladybug exclaimed,

"Don't worry mini-me, Pegasus will bring Bunix as soon as she finishes the race and she'll send you to the exact second where you left off your fight,"

"Sounds good to me," young Chat said enjoying his time swinging on a hammock placed next to a window, but soon their miraculous started to beep, that is, the younger hero's miraculous started to beep, and the older heroes got their hands into action.

Ladybug grabbed Ladybug's hand and dragged her into a bedroom decorated with more Christmas lights, a huge bed, and a minibar, whereas Chat Noir carried Chat Noir on his shoulder and took him into a bathroom.

"It's alright mini-me, you can detransform now," Older Ladybug said, and as younger Ladybug's transformation fell, older Ladybug walked towards the minibar, "Time traveling exhausts Kwamis more than anything else, that's why we have especial kwamis for that," she kneeled in front of the tiny refrigerator where she found some cookies and handed them to Tikki,

"I have so many questions," Marinette told her taking a seat on the bed,

"Be careful what you ask," Ladybug warned taking a seat next to her, "If I tell you what happens it won't happen,"

"That's what Emma said," Marinette giggled but Ladybug just looked at her askance for a moment, but then she seemed to understand what she meant.

"Right, that's what she said," She smiled distractedly for a moment and then added, "It's been a while since she came to visit, I almost forgot about her,"

"How can you forget your own daughter?" Marinette asked with a shocked expression,

"I've been thinking about so many things lately, and I'm afraid my future daughter wasn't one of them," she lamented, so Marinette didn't say anything,

After a moment of silence, Marinette asked, "So, are you coming from a fight?"

"Yes, we won, of course," Ladybug smiled down at her,

"How come you're still transformed?"

"Oh, I guess that is a question I can answer. You see, as we get older our bodies get bonded with the miraculous, and as you grow you get stronger, so Tikki doesn't have to use that much energy to hold the transformation. Also instead of five minutes after your Lucky Charm, you get five Lucky Charms, and some other powers,"

"I think I saw you fly on the way here," Ladybug smiled and taking her yo-yo, she shaped the chord in a specific pattern and then placed it on her back as if it was a backpack, the result was a pair of glowing wings coming out from her back. She started to fly around the room, but then she crashed into a lamp in the ceiling and fell back into the bed.

"You can see I'm still very clumsy, though, Somethings never change," She laughed, making Marinette laugh as well.

o0o

Meanwhile, The older Chat Noir and Adrian sat together in the bathroom waiting for Plagg to finish eating his cheese.

"So, how are things with Ladybug?" Adrien asked resting his arm on the tank of the toilet where he was seating,

"What about her?" Older Chat answered with a question as he shifted his position on the edge of the bathtub

"Are you, I mean, are we like a thing?"

"My Lady and I have an... interesting relationship," Chat explained playing with his baton and pointing at Adrien with it,

"What does that mean?" Adrien huffed,

"My Lady is many things, let's not add 'mad at me' to the list," He gesticulated with his hands,

"Why would she be mad at you?" Adrien raised an eyebrow,

"Because if I tell you what happens then it won't happen. You should know." Adrien nodded and then asked,

"Do you still love her?"

"I don't think there will ever come a time when I don't love her, especially not now that she's... the leader of our group, she's an amazing leader, you should see." Adrien rested his head on the toilet tank imagining how brave his Lady was, when he suddenly hit a sore spot and he flinched, "Are you hurt?" Chat asked,

"I don't know, I think it's the spot where Sightseer hit me," He began to tap his hair until he reached a certain spot that felt sticky,

"Let me take a look," Chat stood up from his seat and started to study Adrien's head, "It doesn't look that bad, but let me clean it, I wouldn't want anything serious to happen to us," Chat winked at him and went to look for something in the cabinets of the bathroom, moving swiftly around them until he found a first aid kit,

"Is this your house?" Adrien asked as Chat cleaned the wound,

"Something like that, it's more like a clubhouse for the members of our team, it's legally mine, though," Chat explained, sitting on the floor to examine Adrien's head,

"What happened to our old house?" Chat poured some sort of liquid on Adrien's head making him flinch,

"Nothing you have to concern your mind with right now." Chat said, "It's really just a scratch, it'll heal once Ladybug fixes everything,"

"Doesn't everything?" Adrien joked but Chat didn't laugh, instead, he just smiled,

They talked for a few more minutes until a bright light was visible from under the door, followed by the voice of a woman yelling, "Alright, who messed up with the time continuum this time?"

"That's her," Chat said, standing up from the floor where he had been seating, "Get ready, you're going back home," Adrien obeyed and transformed, but when the older chat put his hand on the doorknob, Chat placed his hand over his and looked at him in the eye,

"Just one more question before we go," Chat looked back at him, "Are you happy?" Chat looked down for a moment before answering,

"After a long time, I think I can finally say that yes, I am happy," Chat smiled broadly and the younger Chat smiled back at him.

o0o

When they came out of the bathroom the two Ladybugs were already outside talking to Bunix while Pegasus sat in one of the puffs enjoying a bag of chips,

"I'm assuming that the two of you thought twice about what you said," Bunix said pointing at the two older heroes,

"Don't worry Bunix," the older Ladybug answered, "We remember this," She looked at the older Chat and winked at him,

"Oh, if you remember then there's no temporal anomaly, why did you call me?" Bunix out her hands on her hips, "I was in a race on the other side of the world!"

"Well, we still have to return these two youngsters to their time," Chat added with a sarcastic smile,

"Sightseer?" Bunix asked, and they all nodded, making her roll her eyes. "Ok guys, there's something you need to know about this villain if you want to defeat him," Bunix took one of Pegasus's chips and paced around the room, "He can see as far into the future as he wants, but he can only travel forward, and he has a time frame in which he works, he can send you guys as far in the future as he wishes but he can't go after you," She ate the chip, but continued to speak, "So, actually sending you here was a mistake, since now he doesn't have a miraculous to catch, so Hawk Moth is going to give him a hard time about it,"

"It's a pretty dumb and weak Akuma," Chat added, "Don't be intimidated by him, you'll be able to defeat him without help,"

"Is it just me or Hawk Moth is getting desperate right now?" Young Chat asked, and all the four older superheroes answered with a chorus of, "Pretty much," "Very," "Absolutely desperate," "Annoying as heck,"

"For now, just go back to your time, everything will be revealed in time," Older Ladybug told them, putting a comforting hand on the shoulders of the younger superheroes,

Then, Bunix used her umbrella to open a portal for the two of them to leave, they said their goodbyes and took a last look at the room where there were in, trying to memorize it as much as they could.

Out of the corner of his eyes, Chat Noir could swear he saw something else. Was it his imagination or Ladybug just locked arms with the older version of himself? He didn't have the time to check if he saw correctly, 'cause Bunix was rushing them into the portal.

Once they stepped out of it, they found themselves behind Sightseer again, who seemed to still be enjoying his momentary victory of having sent them into the future,

"Not so fast, Doctor Strange," Chat said to him, who turned to face them,

"Don't you need two miraculous holders if you want our miraculous?" Ladybug told him and he paled,

After that, It didn't take much longer to defeat him since he knew now that he couldn't send the heroes into the future. Using her Lucky Charm, Ladybug was able to understand the pattern that his attacks followed, after that, it was just a matter of separating him from his cane and purifying the Akuma that flew from it, thanks to Chat's cataclysm.

"What happened? Where am I?" The young man asked, looking around with a worried expression,

"You were akumatized," Ladybug explained to him,

"And apparently you will continue to be, but don't worry, we'll always be there to save you," Chat smiled at him,

"I will? How did you... Oh no!" The guy asked, and then began to hyperventilate. Ladybug was fast to act and putting a comforting hand on his shoulder told him to take a deep breath while she stroked his back,

"You're not alone, um, what's your name?"

"Darren," he said shakily between shallow breaths.

"We're here for you Darren, we understand how you feel," Little by little, Darren's breathing began to normalize, but they knew that this wasn't the last they would see of him. Darren's anxiety attacks would come back often, he seemed to have lost hope in life and would be triggered if anyone mentioned the future.

This made him a particularly good target for Hawk Moth; however, as much as his anxiety, his power was harmless, because the future doesn't have the power to alter the present. This doesn't mean that his attacks weren't serious, they were scary and unsettling, but they wouldn't take him anywhere. It took him longer than it should have to understand it, and for a long time, Hawk Moth would still continue to use this trait of him against him.

o0o

Both Adrien and Marinette went to bed with broad smiles plastered in their faces, though for different reasons.

Adrien couldn't help to think about what he saw, or at least what he thought he saw.

"Could it be Plagg? I definitely saw Ladybug hold my hand,"

"You mean your future hand?" Plagg giggled sinking in a pile of camembert cheese,

"Yeah, that means Ladybug and I will be together in the future! That settles it! See Plagg? I told you my heart belongs to Ladybug and to Ladybug only," Adrien thrust himself in his bed and snuggled in his blankets,

"I never said the contrary," Plagg said from the other side of the bedroom,

"Well, now there's no doubt in your mind," Adrien said drowsily, falling asleep almost immediately, all that time traveling had really exhausted him.

"There never was, it was _you_ the one whining about it all the time," Plagg yelled at him, but when there was no response, he flew to Adrien's bed and sat into the pillow next to Adrien. He stared intently at Adrien for a while, only to sigh and say to himself, "How long do I have to keep this up? This isn't funny anymore, it's just sad," Plagg sighed, pausing for a moment before adding, "And hella annoying,"

o0o

Meanwhile, Marinette sat on her balcony, half expecting someone to come to visit her, although it was probably too late for that,

"Is it true about the new Powers, Tikki?" She asked the drowsy kwami sitting on her lap,

"As time passes you will get more powers, yes, but don't worry about that, you will know when it happens,"

"Everybody keeps telling me not to worry about something, but that just makes me worry even more," She complained

"I understand Marinette, but all you really need to worry about is living one day at the time," Tikki yawned, "Which is hard now that you know part of what your future will look like,"

After a pause, Marinette added, "Did Chat look different to you?"

"You mean future Chat? He did seem about five years older," Tikki snuggled a bit more in Marinette's lap,

"No, I mean, the way he acted, there was something about him, I can't describe it, but he and Ladybug seemed to be in sync, and he also seemed a lot more mature,"

"That's probably because they have worked together for ten plus years," Tikki grunted with her eyes closed,

"There has to be more to it, I can feel it,"

"Marinette," Tikki started to speak more adamantly abandoning her previous sleepy position and flying to face her owner, "People change people, for better or for worst, I'm sure future Chat Noir has seen and done things that neither you nor Chat can imagine now, which is why I'm telling you to be patient, time will tell you all you want to know,"

"The good part is that we'll always have each other, and we get to grow as heroes together. It's good to have someone I can count on,"

"You guys are already a great team, as you were always meant to be," Tikki cheered,

"Yes, but we will be better." She sighed before adding, "There's still a lot about each other that we don't know, but when we do, we will be unstoppable,"

Marinette was right, of course, about everything, the future had many things in store for them, some good and some bad, but everything had a purpose and for everything, there's a season. One day they would see that together they were destined for greater things.

_**I know one day we'll fly** _

_**Because my love, one day you'll see** _

_**With me, you will become you!** _


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

_**Je ne comprends pas ce que je veux,** _

_**Je ne peux pas tomber amoureux** _

_**D'où vient ce sentiment mystérieux?** _

It was around those days that things began to change.

Not for me though, I was still suffering from headaches. In fact, that day I had the most terrible one I've ever had in my life. Needless to say, I wasn't paying attention to the class. It was so bad that my body began to shake near the end of the period.

"Are you alright, Alba?" I heard Adrien's kind voice talking to me. This was when I finally opened my eyes to notice that we were nearly the only ones left in the room, other than the teacher, who was staring at me with a worried expression.

"Yeah, I'm fine, it's just a headache, I'll just take a pill, it'll pass," Though to tell the truth, I felt like I was about to faint.

"Alright, I don't know if you heard, but Professor LeBeau just announced our final project and we're in it together,"

"Ah, can you believe it? The final project of our final year! I can't wait to graduate," I said sluggishly laying my head on my desk,

"I know, I admit I'm gonna miss it here," he sighed, "But come, the project is due tomorrow, we can work on it at the library before we go home. I already told my bodyguard to pick me up later."

"Tomorrow," I said without opening my eyes, "Tomorrow?" I squealed standing abruptly from my chair, "Why didn't you say so!" But the movement made my vision blurry, and I felt lightheaded, it was so bad that Adrien had to hold me so I didn't fall,

"I think you should go to see the nurse first,"

"Good idea." Adrien walked me to the infirmary where the nurse gave me a small green pill to swallow, saying it would make me feel better, and true to her word, I felt way better after a few minutes. Good enough to stand and follow Adrien, who stood guard outside of the door,

"Are you sure you're good enough to go to the library? We could wait a bit more,"

"Isn't the thing due tomorrow? Let's just get it over with," I sighed, I might not be the most responsible girl, but I always turn my assignments in on time. "What is it about?"

"Can't you read my mind?" He joked, giggling nervously,

"Not today kitten, this little head of mine is going through enough distress with my own thoughts, I just can't deal with yours or anyone else's for that matter."

He began to explain that we had to make a book report, and I couldn't imagine how we could do all that in a day.

When we reached the library, all the lights were off, but when Adrien turned them on, people appeared from under desks and behind shelves shouting:

"Happy birthday, Alba!" I was shocked for a moment longer than I want to admit, was it my birthday?

"Did you forget?" Marinette laughed, walking next to me holding a cake in her hands. She motioned for me to blow the candles, and when I did, I began to ask the obvious questions

"What day is today? How didn't I see it coming? How did you make a party in the library? What about the project?" They all laughed and led me to take a seat with them on the carpet floor. Maybe I didn't see the party coming because of my headaches, but how did I forget my own birthday? I was turning 18, 18 for heaven's sake!

"We _are_ doing a project together," Adrien explained with a broad smile while Marinette handed him a piece of that gorgeous looking chocolate brigadeiro cake, "But is not due until next week. I was truly concerned about your headache when you fell for it, since today is Friday, I mean how did you not see that?" He lied to me! He actually lied to me and mocked me and I didn't see it, darn headache!

"Also, apparently the librarian is a friend of yours, so when I asked her if we could throw a little party in here, she gladly accepted as long as we left everything perfectly clean," Marinette explained. Madam Callie was always fun to talk to during my long visits to the library. How nice of her.

I greatly enjoyed my surprise party, and I wasn't the only one, everyone was happy and having a good time when Rose cheered,

"Let's play truth or dare!" People groaned and said it was the oldest game ever created, and that we should play video games instead, but Rose looked so excited about playing and so sad when no one wanted to play with her, that I said,

"I love that game! come on guys, it's my birthday, let's play!" They resigned to their fate and accommodated in a circle. Some seating on the floor while others brought some puff chairs and couches to seat while eating Cheetos and other chips.

They asked Alya about her first kiss, Rose was forced to sit with a book over her head for the rest of the game, Nino had to let Alya check his phone and Adrien confessed to being Ladybug's biggest fan. When it was Alix's turn to ask me, I chose truth,

"What is your biggest fear," She asked, but I thought about it for so long that she had to add, "Come on, don't come at me with that 'I'm not afraid of anything' act, there's gotta be something,"

"What about Lions?" "Snakes?" "Bugs?" "Heights?" Different people asked shuddering at the thought of them, but I just shook my head,

"None of those things can harm you unless you get close enough,"

"What about death," Mylène whispered loudly, shuddering at the thought,

"Death is like a lion without teeth, it might seem scary but it can't harm you, it's just the step between us and heaven," I explained but then I thought of something, "I guess what does scare me the most is the death of someone I love," I finished nonchalantly taking a sip of my soda.

"Ok, it's your turn, Alba, even if your answer was the lamest possible," Alix rolled her eyes, and I asked the next person. After another round, it was Alya's turn to ask Marinette,

"Who is your new crush?" All eyes were on her, and she turned red as a beetroot. Everyone knew she liked Adrien in the past (everyone except Adrien of course,) so they were all curious as to who was that mysterious person that had kicked Adrien from her heart. When I turned to see Adrien's reaction, he just took a long sip of his cup, in an effort to hide the color in his face.

Thankfully I had recovered my powers and was able to see that Adrien was more curious than he cared to admit and that Marinette was debating on what to say, because she couldn't say it was Adrien, for several reasons, a) He was sitting next to her, and b) Everybody, including herself, knew that she had given up on him years ago and c) if she said the truth, she could put the one she loved and herself in danger.

"DARE, I want dare," She squealed not knowing what else to say,

"Alright, then I dare you to kiss the person seating next to you," She said with a mischievous smile, but when Marinette's leaned in to kiss Alix's cheek, Alya cleared her throat and said, "I meant the other side."

Marinette's face turned white as paper, because the person next to her was none other than Adrien Agreste who was still sipping from his cup, how much liquid did that thing contain?

Marinette gathered herself and gave a quick peck on Adrien's cheek. But he hadn't been expecting her to, so he choked on his drink and began to cough, turning even redder from the effort. Marinette tried to help him patting gently on his back and repeatedly exclaiming, "Sorry, I'm so sorry."

Adrien had to step outside for a moment, and I couldn't help the smile spreading in my face, I had to bite my cheeks quickly before anyone noticed it. Not that anyone cared, as everyone else was laughing hysterically,

After Adrien came back, we continued to play our game, and after a few more turns somebody dared Adrien to prank-call his father. All color disappeared from his face and he began to giggle nervously,

"I don't think that's a good idea," He scratched the back of his head, but someone handed him a cellphone and he took it with shaking hands, "Okay, but what do I say to him,"

"Tell him that he ordered a pizza or something," Nino offered,

"No, tell him that his car got trucked," Alix suggested,

"No, no, tell him you got expelled!" Everyone looked at Kim as if he had suggested that Adrien should kill himself, and in a way he did. Gabriel Agreste would be furious if his son ever told him with something like that.

"I think I got it," He got the phone and typed his father's number, Adrien took a deep breath and tapped the green button. When he answered the call, Adrien said with his Chat Noir carefree tone (although only _I_ recognized it as his Chat Noir facade,) "Hello sir, I have a missed call from this number," He put the phone on speaker,

"Who's speaking," Answered the cold voice of Gabriel Agreste,

"This is Anita, Anita Bath, you call me a-" Gabriel didn't let him finish because he hung up the phone. "I guess a pristine sense of humor doesn't run in the family," But everyone else laughed at how the joke had turned out.

When they got bored of playing truth or dare, they began to play video games on the giant tv. They were never my forte, but Marinette seemed to be having fun defeating everyone. Adrien and Max were the only ones good enough to actually present a challenge for her. But she won nonetheless, no one could ever beat her in this game so people started to scatter again.

Someone suggested playing just dance and various other activities. In truth, we were having so much fun together that we forgot to clean the room.

o0o

The evening came, and everybody went to their respective homes or evening activities, but everybody left earlier than they told Madam Callie they would.

Actually, Madam Callie arrived at the library with a small cupcake in her hands to give me as a birthday present, but when she stepped into the library, instead of finding a few teenagers having a small party, she was greeted by a room loitered with juice cups, cake crumbs, video game cases, and other remains scattered in the floor.

She was so astonished that she grabbed the cupcake in one hand and squeezed it, spilling more crumps on the floor, while she regretted so much letting the kids have a party and cursed under her breath. Her disappointment was so great, that a black and purple butterfly landed on the cupcake wrap,

"Fly-tipper, the kids you trusted to take care of your precious library betrayed you and now it's up to you to clean after their mess? I don't think that's fair, why not give them a taste of their own medicine? Show them how disastrous you can be! Show them that you're not just the meek woman they think you are. In return, you must retrieve for me Ladybug and Chat Noir's miraculous!"

"Thank you, Hawk Moth, Marinette is gonna pay for this!"

o0o

Adrien had been thinking about Marinette a lot that day. Why did he choke when she kissed him? She had kissed him before. It didn't make any sense at all.

He knew now that he would have some sort of relationship with Ladybug in the future, he couldn't think this way about Marinette, it would be like cheating on Ladybug, especially now that things were going so great between them, besides, you wouldn't want to be the one getting on Ladybug's bad side.

Yet their feelings for each other were growing and he knew that Ladybug felt a lot for him. However, there was still a great wall between them, separating them, they couldn't reveal their identities to each other. Hawk Moth could use it against them or something worse could happen. Their feelings for each other were already dangerous as they were, it didn't matter how much Chat wished it was different, they had to keep their relationship strictly professional. However, a furtive smile, a few hugs, and several winks wouldn't hurt anyone, right? He had shared some of those moments with Marinette, and she was just a friend, right?

Marinette... he had resigned himself to seeing her as a friend, but why did she make him so nervous lately? Or now that he thought about it, she had startled him several times just this month, like when he was trying to help her with her Math homework, he couldn't stop staring at her hands. They looked so tiny and perfect. How he wanted to hold them! But stopped himself when he thought of Ladybug.

"This will all be better once we're off to college," Adrien mumbled to himself,

"Did you say something?" Plagg asked Adrien with a mouthful of cheese,

"Nothing, I just—"

"Let me guess, you were babbling about Ladybug or Marinette or both!" He mocked him,

"I wasn't—" he tried to defend himself but he knew it was useless. He hated to admit it, but Plagg knew him too well, after all, they've been together for more than four years now, and the relationship between a kwami and its holder is much deeper than it's possible to explain. "You know what," Adrien pronounced suddenly, "I'm gonna pay our friend Marinette a little visit, it's been a while,"

"You go there like once a month, you're almost like—"

"Plagg, claws out," Adrien sang and transformed into Chat Noir, who had grown almost a head taller and had more pronounced muscles now that he was 17. His powers had also grown, as he was faster now than ever and his senses were more refined.

He leaped from his window and ran the direction of Marinette's bakery. But what he saw when he arrived was not Marinette's bakery or maybe it was, but it was covered in something green and smelly and disgusting,

"What's all this," He mumbled to himself just when something hit him on the back of his head and he fell from the building.

o0o

Marinette was pleased with how Alba's birthday party had gone. She had planned it carefully, telling everyone last minute, even Madam Callie, the librarian, so that Alba couldn't read their thoughts. Actually, now that she thought about it, she would have to thank her on Monday, she had been very nice by allowing them to have a party in the library. What a nice lady she was.

"Wasn't it a great party, Tikki? Alba was truly surprised, we were lucky she had that headache," Marinette giggled, talking to her kwami while she sat on the chair of her balcony.

"There's something that's been bugging me about it though," Tikki sighed, flying around the plants, taking in the scent of the blooming flowers and enjoying the cool spring air,

"What is it?" Marinette asked absently looking at the starry sky.

"Didn't she asked you to clean the room after you were finished?" Marinette's eyes widened and she popped up from her chair,

"Oh no Tikki, I totally forgot!" She screeched, "What am I gonna do? Should I go to school earlier tomorrow and clean everything?"

"Tomorrow is Saturday, isn't it? But then, what other option do we have? The school is already closed by now," Tikki flew in front of Marinette.

"Yeah, I guess that's what I'm gonna do, besides, it's not like Madam Callie will go back there today, and the mess can't be that bad," She shrugged. But when Marinette sat back on her chair, a smelly giant green ball of some gooey substance fell over her,

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng!" A gruff voice screamed from below her building, "You're gonna pay for trashing my library!" The Lady continued to throw green bombs to her house, but apparently, she hadn't seen her.

"Oh no Tikki, I think it's too late already," Tikki nodded, allowing Marinette to transform into her alter ego. She ran away from her now trashed home, in the opposite direction from where she heard the villain's voice since she didn't want her to see her come out of her house.

What Marinette didn't see was that the villain entered her house, trashed her bedroom and captured her parents in a gooey mess, but when she didn't find her, she went out to her balcony and began to look around searching for her. That was when she saw Chat approaching, leaping from one building to another

"That's Chat Noir, fly-tipper," A dark voice said to the lady when a purple butterfly appeared on her face. "Go, and get me my miraculous,"

"At your service, Hawk Moth." That was when she knocked Chat down.

o0o

When Chat recovered his senses, Ladybug stood in front of him.

"Chat Noir, can you hear me?" she stared him with a worried expression,

"Loud and clear my lady, what happened?" He groaned rubbing the back of his neck. Chat noticed his surroundings, they were hiding in a poorly lit alley, with trash containers and bags scattered around.

"That villain fly-tipper, she keeps trashing the city, literally! She knocked you out but I found you just before she had a chance to take your miraculous. You were out just a few seconds," He smiled tenderly at her,

"I'm glad you were there to save me," She smiled back at him and caressing his cheek tenderly with her hand, but then she announced,

"We gotta go Chaton, she won't stop until we stop her," They stood up and began to run following the trail of spoiled food and waste. They finally found her, shooting green balls at their school,

"Hey, fly-tipper," Chat yelled at her when they were close enough, "It was really trashy of you hitting me before I acknowledged your presence,"

"Be careful, Chat Noir or things could get messy," she ran towards him, but Ladybug captured her using her yo-yo. Fly-tipper recovered quickly and pulled the string on Ladybug's yo-yo, sending her crashing against Chat Noir.

They stood up and continued to fight her, but she continued to shoot balls of trash towards them. They dodged most of the attacks but they couldn't help getting trashed with a few of them.

"I bet the Akuma is in her canon," Ladybug said noticing that she never parted from the weapon which was almost her size, and had the shape of a cupcake wrapper, but larger and was apparently empty,

"Well then, let's go get it," Chat replied cleaning the smelly green substance from his clothes.

When they were about to surround her, Chat heard a buzzing sound,

"Something is coming," He said to Ladybug,

"Where? I can't see anything," She told him dodging another attack,

"Cover me, I'll go see," Chat ran in the direction he heard the sound and climbed over some building where he saw it, a few streets away, but approaching faster and faster. An army of flies coming in their direction, he warned Ladybug enjoying her alarmed expression, because yes, Ladybug hated bugs.

Before it was too late, Ladybug called her lucky charm, but the weirdest thing happened when nothing appeared. She only got her yo-yo back.

"Did your lucky charm just dump you?" Chat joked, but Ladybug was too worried to argue, and the flies were getting closer so they began to run away from them jumping into the nearest fountain.

"What does it mean?" Ladybug mumbled to herself, she looked around but she couldn't see anything to use, only her yo-yo. But then an image came to her mind, a memory of the future, she remembered herself flying, and she knew what she had to do.

Chat stared at her while she rearranged the chord of her yo-yo to make it seem like a tiny backpack. She put it on and then it began to shake as a pair of glowing wings grew from it.

At first, Ladybug was clumsy trying to control her wings, but she got the hang of it after a moment, mostly. Chat was astonished by the sight, tongue-tied for a second, but then said the most interesting thing he could think at the moment

"I've always thought you were an angel my lady, but this confirms it," Chat exclaimed still in awe, but she was too delighted to notice what he was saying. She was flying! She was actually flying but then flies flew towards her, she panicked and her wings stopped working and she fell from a considerable height, luckily Chat was there and caught her before she hit the floor, but now she knew exactly what they had to do.

"Get ready Chat, I'm going to fly you right unto her," She grabbed Chat by his arms and began to fly in the direction where the tornado of flies gathered around the lady. She dropped him through the opening at the top. Chat pulled out his baton while he fell and whacked fly-tipper's canon breaking it in the process, releasing the black butterfly.

Ladybug landed inside the tornado retrieving her yo-yo from her back catching the butterfly and purifying it. Right after that, she used her yo-yo again and used her miraculous ladybug to fix everything around her.

"Wasted!" Chat said to the Lady who when back to being the normal and kind Madam Callie.

While the ladybugs fixed everything, Ladybug kept squealing and giving excited little jumps,

"Chat, can you believe it? I can fly!" She beamed at him,

"I can see that, my Lady, now I'm jealous," he jested but then winked at her. His comment did nothing to turn her excitement down, but then her earings began to beep, she exclaimed

"Oh, I gotta go." She began to run, but then stopped in her place, "Wait a minute, I can fly!" She took her yo-yo to put it back on her back and began to fly when her wings expanded, "Chat I can fly!" She repeated before disappearing into the night sky, though Chat could still hear her excited shouts.

Chat smiled warmly at her and then turned his gaze to see Madam Callie,

"Do you need me to drop you off somewhere?" He asked her kneeling next to her,

"No, I..." She stammered, "I live nearby," She looked gloomy, unlike she ever did, so Chat put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"It wasn't your fault Ma'am, Hawk Moth took advantage of you,"

"I didn't hurt anyone, did I?" She looked at him, with worry shining in her eyes,

"You were mainly after Marinette, but Ladybug fixed everything, so she should be fine, don't worry about it anymore," Marinette! He should go see how she was since he never got to see her earlier.

The lady nodded and began to walk away, but a little surprise awaited her, because when Ladybug used her miraculous, she also cleaned the library that had been trashed before the attack.

As for Chat, He began to walk away, but then he increased his speed, running probably at the fastest he had ever run, he needed to make sure Marinette was alright.

Once he was on the building next to Marinette's home, he was greeted by the weirdest view. Ladybug was circling over Marinette's bakery.

It was too dark for her to see him, so he watched her for another moment, she was surely enjoying her new wings. He was about to call out for her when she landed in Marinette's balcony just when her transformation fell. Marinette standing in her place.

_**I don't understand what I want,** _

_**I can't fall in love.** _

_**Where does this mysterious feeling come from?** _


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

_**Nous serons réunis dans la nuit,** _

_**Comme dans le jour où tout ce qui brille** _

_**sera notre amour à l'infini** _

"Marinette is Ladybug, Ladybug is Marinette!" Chat repeated for the ninth time in a row while he paced back and forth around his room.

"Maybe you saw wrong, there's no way she..." Plagg pleaded with him once the transformation fell.

"There's no way, Plagg? There's no way?!" Adrien interrupted him, turning to face his kwami, "I saw her detransform with my own eyes!" He yelled pointing at his bloodshot eyes,

"Well maybe… Maybe..." Plagg tried to find a new excuse he could use to protect Tikki's owner's identity, but finding none, he exclaimed, "Oh screw it. It was about time!"

"You knew all along? And you saw me struggle for years and didn't say anything?"

"Why did you think I hated listening to you ramble about it?"

"It all makes sense now," every instance when he could have guessed her identity came to his mind, and he began to ramble again. "Like when Marinette began to wear her hair down and so did Ladybug! Or when we had to switch miraculous because I had changed clothes, now I know it was because she changed clothes at the same time as I did! Or... Or remember that time when I saved her from her grandmother and she almost spilled the beans? Or when we fought Star-train and she was there already, even though there was no way she could have been. I should have known!" all these memories overwhelmed him to the point when he threw himself on his bed groaning, staring at the tall ceiling.

"Yes, and I must say you were really oblivious," Plagg followed Adrien to his bed.

"But she doesn't know who I am, I'm not the only oblivious one here!" He tried to defend himself, but Plagg crossed his arms raising an eyebrow,

"Well, maybe it's because she didn't want to see what was in front of her eyes, but you did." Plagg sighed, "But it's all in the past, what matters now is what you're gonna do with this juicy information." Adrien's eyes widened and he covered his face with a pillow, "Come on kid, this is the best news you've received in your life! Are you gonna run away now?"

"I'm not running away it's just..." He removed the pillow and continued talking, "I've been babbling to Marinette about my feelings for Lady... for her! How do I recover from that?"

"So what, she's done more embarrassing things if you ask me,"

"Yeah," Adrien smiled dreamily, "That's part of what makes her perfect," Plagg made a disgusted face.

"You're too cheesy, kid, and not in a good way,"

"But you're right about something, Plagg. What am I gonna do now?" He sighed, "I have this precious piece of information, but nothing has changed, she doesn't know who I am!"

"Are you gonna tell her?" Plagg asked with brows furrowed and fiddley hands,

"Why not?"

"You're not supposed to know each other's identities,"

"I never wanted it to be that way, if I trust her with my life and everything I have, why not trust her with my identity as well?"

"It could be dangerous," Plagg warned, pointing at him with his paw,

"It would be worst if I knew and she didn't," Adrien lay still, thinking on how his Lady would react if she knew that he knew. His thoughts began to wander off and with a yawn, he drifted into a restless sleep.

But Plagg, noticing that Adrien was sleeping, sat next to his head and sighed,

"I know I probably shouldn't, but man am I glad the kid knows! No more whining over the girl," He smiled and settled on Adrien's pillow.

o0o

After what felt like the longest weekend (since there had been no other Akuma sightings since fly-tipper), we went back to school feeling refreshed and renewed. Even me!

For once I decided to pay attention to the class instead of lurking around people's minds, so I didn't really notice what was going on around me, but what I did see and remembered was that I was supposed to work a project with Adrien, so I went to talk to him at the end of the last period,

"Hey Adrien," I approached to the desk where he was seating while looking for my phone on my backpack, "I hope you didn't forget about the..." But when I lifted my eyes to look at him, I saw the same phrase circling around his mind over and over, 'Marinette is Ladybug, Ladybug is Marinette,' "Adrien," I giggled nervously, "what cha thinking about?" He glared up at me,

"You!" He slammed his hands on his desk, gathering the attention from the few other students that still lingered in the room, "You knew all this time!"

"Shh!" I warned him, putting my hand on his shoulder to calm him down, "Nothing to see here," I addressed the other students, "He just missed an assignment, and I should have told him!" I giggled nervously, maybe too nervously, "Silly me, now get going there's nothing to see here." Making sure all the students left I turned to him and whispered, "How much do you know?"

"Everything?" He hissed,

"Okay well, first of all, I don't like your attitude, second, no one knows everything, Adrien, you're gonna have to be just a bit more specific,"

"I know who she is, is that enough to you?" I gulped at his uncharacteristically rude response,

"Yeah well, that sums it up..." I looked around to see that there were still some students in the room, "Hey Adrien, don't we have a project to do together? How 'bout we go to your place and talk about it a bit more," I spoke louder than I should have, to see if he noticed what I was trying to do. He looked askance for a second but then saw the people walking by.

"Yeah, yeah!" He began speaking in a similar tone to mine, "My driver should be outside, I'll ask him to let you come with me."

It took some convincing for Adrien's bodyguard and chauffeur to let me into his car, but I remember something that Nino told me once, the man was a fan of action figures, so I grabbed the one I kept in my backpack, for emergencies just like this and handed it over. The man took it gladly and opened the door for us to enter,

"Wow Adrien, this is a nice car, I can't believe I've never been here in the three years I've known you," I began to press all the buttons that I found on the car as the peasant I am. I opened windows, peeked on the sunroof, closed and opened a panel between the driver, and the passengers and even found a secret compartment for chocolates and candy, "Man, if this is your car, I wonder how your home will be." I chimed, but Adrien just nodded and smiled. His thoughts were still elsewhere, so I grabbed the book I carried in my bag, the one we were supposed to do our report on and began talking, "So, Adrien, I know the book is about a boy, I think his name was Adriel or something, and he falls in love with a mysterious girl, but after a while he discovers he's actually in love with his best friend, who happens to be the same person. I suppose he finds out who she is at some point in the story, but I didn't get to that part, did you?" I looked at him hoping he understood what I meant, and he did,

"Yeah, so, this girl erm..." He glanced at his bodyguard, who was too busy driving to focus on our exchange, but one can never be too cautious, "Basically what happened was that the boy, Adriel, went to visit his best friend's house one night, but instead, he found the mysterious lady near her place, she thought nobody saw her and took off her erm... costume, revealing that she was none other than the boy's best friend, erm, Marianna, yes Marianna that was her name." Of course, I could see the remaining information on his mind. I swear their relationship is better than the soap operas I used to watch with my grandma,

"I see... and this boy, did he tell Marianna that he knew who she was?"

"No, not yet, I mean, not as far as I've read, but I think he went to ask the mad witch for advice." I glared at him with a 'you better not be talking about me' stare, "But I think we should finish reading it when we get to my place,"

"Good Idea, I get dizzy when I read on the car." After a moment of silence, I added, "So, this mad witch, was she mad enough to punish Adriel for calling her a mad witch?" I gave him a crooked smile daring him to say a thing,

"Not as mad as Adriel was, once he found out she knew who the mysterious lady was," He looked mirroring my threatening expression for a moment, but then we both burst into laughter. What were we even talking about?

We were still laughing when the car parked a few moments later, adding a few more comments on the mad witch and Adriel that I can't remember, instead I can perfectly remember the chill that went over my spine the moment I stepped on Adrien's house. It wasn't the way it was decorated or it's architecture, it wasn't even the AC, instead, it was the figure that stood on top of the stairs looking down at us.

"Who is this person, Adrien," Gabriel Agreste asked eyeing me with disdain,

"This is Alba, father, she's here to work on a project with me," Adrien explained, clearing a tear from his eye,

"Hello sir," I smiled finally looking at him from my teary eyes, but as I opened my eyes I saw it, in his thoughts, what he was thinking, and soon my eyes began to fill with more tears, but this time they weren't from the laughter.

"You're not welcome in my house, young lady, my son is not allowed to spend time with girls like you," he spat the words as if they disgusted him. Adrien was about to protest, but I intervened,

"I understand sir," I blinked away a few tears, "I... I guess we can work on our project another time, see ya Adriel, I mean Adrien," I rushed out of that house as fast as I could, not allowing myself to sink into despair, because it was exactly what _he_ wanted.

"Alba, wait," Adrien shouted, I couldn't hold my tears anymore when I turned around to face him. He put a hand on my shoulder and began to talk in a soothing tone, "I'm sorry Alba, I know my father is a bit rude but,"

"I found him," I declared with a broken voice,

"What?" He looked at me as if I had really gone mad this time,

"I found Hawk Moth."

o0o

"Are you sure Sirena? you're not joking, are you?" Ladybug kept asking as she ran next to me. The sun was setting now and we were heading to Adrien's house, the place where I told Chat to wait.

"I'm not sure, that's why I called you, I'll explain everything once we find Chat." It took a little convincing to persuade Adrien to wait until now to figure out if I was right or not, but in the end, I convinced him that if Hawk Moth felt our negative emotions, he would use them against us.

We arrived at our destination where Chat sat staring absently at the mansion before him, but turned to face us when Ladybug said:

"Chat, do you know anything? Sirena says she knows who Hawk Moth is," But Chat said nothing, he just shrugged and continued to stare at the house,

"Ladybug you need to calm down, everything will be revealed,"

"What's wrong with you Chat, I thought you would be more excited to find him," She pressed him, but he didn't answer. He was lost in thought, worried that I would say what he thought I was gonna say.

"Ladybug," I called her attention, and pointed at my next target with my trident, "It's him,"

"Gabriel Agreste? Are you sure?" He was sitting in his office from where we saw him, but I wasn't close enough to read everything,

"I think so, but I'm not sure,"

"You called us here to tell us that you weren't sure?" She snapped putting her hands on her hips,

"Well, this is the closest I've been from finding him,"

"What exactly did you see?" She crossed her arms on her chest and glared at me,

"I was going to Adrien's house to work on a project, and from the moment I stood there, I could feel something was off, but it wasn't until I saw him that I understood why. I saw he was thinking and I quote, 'oh, this is a new one, let's see how much I can push her until I can create a negative emotion,' or something along those lines." Ladybug's scowl hadn't changed, anyone could think those things. Chat was still not looking at me, but I could sense his conflicted emotions roaring, the Adrien side of him battling the Chat Noir. "The second thing I saw, and the one that concerns me the most was his name, it was 'Gabriel Agreste/Collector/H.' I've rarely ever seen three identities at once, but when I do is mostly with miraculous holders that had been akumatized, but there has never been an Akuma called 'H', so I thought it could be the beginning of Hawk Moth," Ladybug was about to say something but I started talking again, "And I know, I know this could be a coincidence, but that's why I brought you here, to prove once and for all if he's the one we've been looking for or not,"

"Alright then, be our guest," She motioned for me to take a step forward and check it out.

I took a look at Chat before grabbing my trident and picking out the middle prong, which I used to look at Gabriel, and everything he thought, everything he was, and everything he did, came to my mind in a matter of seconds,

I blinked back a tear and turned slowly to see my teammates, who looked at me with pleading eyes, though for different reasons. I nodded. Ladybug was shocked but in a good excited way, she even squealed in joy! Whereas Chat pressed his eyes and mouth together, not letting a single sound escape.

"I suspected it was him once, but I disregarded it when he was akumatized, and he was in the list you used a while ago, how did you not see it then?" Ladybug blurted out,

Memories of that day came to my mind, and I just wanted to slap myself for being so careless, "I checked his name before looking, and then Chat came to talk to me, and then there was an Akuma, I... I just forgot! I had so many things in my mind at the time,"

"It doesn't matter, let's be over with him, once and for all," Ladybug was ready to fight him, but when she looked that Chat hadn't moved an inch, she exclaimed "Chat, what are you doing? Let's go get him."

"Maybe you should wait for a little, Ladybug," I put a hand on her shoulder, but she shoved it off, ignoring my words

"We've waited so long for this, why wait?"

"You don't get it," Chat whispered, the tiniest hoarse whisper, but loud enough for Ladybug to hear,

"Yeah, I obviously don't get it!" Ladybug retorted, "you're the one that talked about defeating Hawk Moth all the time, what happened to you,"

"Ladybug..." I tried but was interrupted by a loud reproach by Chat, who towered before Ladybug and me,

"You don't get it and you never will, your life is so perfect, why would it matter to you?"

"What are you talking about?" She yelled back, "What's wrong with you? Why are you like this?"

"Because," he hissed, "He's my father."

"Your father, what are you..." But before she could say anything else, he grabbed his staff and jumped to the nearest building, hiding in its shadow,

"Ladybug..." I tried to say something, but she continued,

"His father? Gabriel Agreste only has one son..." She stopped as the realization crossed her mind and she looked at me with sparkly eyes. Immediately she grabbed her yo-yo and swung to the building where Chat Noir fled to. She called him until she saw him, with his face buried between his arms,

She got closer and knelt before him, touching his hair slightly, forcing him to look at her. She pressed her hand on his cheek with the slightest of touch, his expression unreadable.

"Adrien?" She whispered, and he closed his eyes, enjoying her warm touch on his cheek,

"Yes, Marinette." Her eyes widened like two big plates. She snatched her hand from Adrien's face, and he gave her a sad smile, "I found out the night you got your wings, I saw you detransform when you got to your place," All color left her face only to come back suddenly and abruptly, turning her cheeks into the darkest shade of red,

"Why didn't you tell me," She managed to mumble with a cracking voice,

"I was about to, and then all this happened," Adrien had to look away before continuing, "And I was afraid you'd be disappointed if you knew who I was,"

"Disappointed? Why on earth would I be disappointed?"

"Because of my dad, I was afraid you'd think I was like him or... Or..."

"No, no," she pleaded with him, cupping his face between her hands and forcing him to look back at her, "I know you're not like your father, you're brave, and loyal, dependable, and fair, and good. There's no way I could think... I know you're not like him, and you'll never be," He smiled at her again, and this time she threw herself into his arms, hugging him with the most extensive type of love, the kind of love that bears everything.

o0o

Later that night, Marinette heard a knock on her window, and she rushed to open it for Chat to enter.

"Chat?" She searched him trying to figure out his mood for a moment but failed, until he called off his transformation and Adrien Agreste stood before her. Marinette was taken aback, as she still wasn't used to the fact that Chat, her Chat, was none other than Adrien, her Adrien.

"I just didn't feel like being in that place tonight," he shrugged and went to take a seat on Marinette's _chaise lounge_ , "I know I said I wanted to be alone but... do you mind if I stay, my Lady? Just for a while,"

Marinette smiled warmly and went to take a sit on her desk chair, "My house is your house Chaton, it's always been,"

"Was it a shock when you found out who I was?" He asked settling unto the _chaise lounge_

"Well yeah, it's not like you said it subtly," She giggled and he smiled though the smile didn't reach his eyes,

"Was it a shock when you found out about me then?"

"More than a shock it was a relief,"

"A relief? You better explain," She rolled her chair to be closer to him and looked at him expectantly,

"I've always been in love with Ladybug, and I swore I would be faithful to her even if she felt nothing for me, but then you came along, we were getting closer to each other, both as Chat and as Adrien, and you stole my heart again, but I was battling the idea because my heart already belonged to Ladybug, but when I found that you were the same person, everything clicked for me." Marinette had gone gradually redder with every word he said,

"Ugh, so cheesy!" Plagg grunted but only loud enough so that just Tikki, who was seating next to him on Marinette's desk could hear,

"Shut up Plagg, you know this is my favorite part," She answered. Adrien and Marinette were too immersed on their conversation that they couldn't listen to what they were saying,

"You know I prefer other kinds of cheesy,"

"You can keep up your tough guy act, but we all know you're a helpless romantic," Tikki giggled, making him frown, though the slightest hint of a smile was visible in the corner of his mouth.

Marinette was staring intently at Adrien as if she still couldn't believe what her eyes were seeing, could this man be more perfect?

"Why do you look at me like that?" He snickered,

"I just... I gave up on you so long ago, I thought you loved Kagami and I fell for the cat that came to visit me every other night, I just never thought that... I just, I don't know how..." She stared at her hands folded over her lap until another pair of stronger and bigger hands grabbed them and kissed them, she looked up at Adrien with gleaming eyes, "Did I just confess to you?" She sighed,

"I confessed first," he winked, making her laugh. She saw that one of his locks had fallen out of place, making him look more like her Chat Noir, but she felt the urge to put it back in its place, and she did, she also caressed his cheek locking eyes with him. He smiled at her, and she smiled back, touching their foreheads together not paying attention at how close they were.

"I'm just happy it's you," she whispered, closing her eyes, in an attempt to close the space between them. But a knock was heard on her window startling them out of their seat. They looked at each other a little flushed, but Marinette went to see who had interrupted them,

"Do you receive other nightly visitors?" He joked, though there was a serious tone in his voice,

"Only one," she answered opening the window for a distracted Sirena to enter the room, reading frantically from a paper in her hands,

"Marinette, I need to tell you something else, I've been looking all over the place for you but I figure you just came home, there's more to Hawk Moth that we think, and we need to..." I lifted my eyes from the paper to see that Adrien was there, staring at me with annoyed eyes, "Oh so you're here too, great, I..." I looked at them again and understood that I had just ruined a romantic moment, "Oh, crabs, I interrupted something, didn't I?"

"You kinda did," "It's all right," they said at the same time, though I couldn't tell who said what,

"I'm sorry, I... wait, are you two like... together?" I motioned at them with my hands, making them blush,

"No," "Yes," they said at the same time and then looked at each other,

"Yes?" "No?" They exclaimed back,

"Well, whatever it is that you decide to be, can I advise you to keep it a secret?" They stared at me intently as if I had told them to drink poison, "I don't want to be the bearer of bad news, but I'm scared of what your father could do if he found out,"

"Do you think he would try to separate us?" Adrien asked, stepping closer to Marinette,

"It's possible, he seems to be growing more and more desperate to get your miraculous,"

"Okay, but why does he want them?" Marinette crossed her arms on her chest,

"That's what I was coming to say, you better sit down for this part though." they sat together on the _chaise lounge_ and I sat in front of them, on the desk chair. I cleared my throat and began, "Your mother is alive, Adrien," His eyes widened, but said nothing otherwise, Marinette had a similar expression but motioned for me to continue, "I didn't understand well why, but she's in a coma, and he's hoping to use the ultimate power to wake her up,"

"No, but he can't do that," Marinette said, "It's an eye for an eye and a life for a life. If he wakes her up someone else will go into coma or worse, someone he loves as much as he loves her," Marinette began speaking loudly, but her volume gradually decreased with every word she spoke, as if slowly realizing that they were talking about Adrien's parents,

I could see Adrien's conflicted thoughts, but he didn't speak the whole time, he was just analyzing the situation over and over, trying to make sense of my words, and what they would mean in his life.

Marinette and I spent a few more moments discussing a plan of action, but Adrien kept staring absently at a wall. At some point, Marinette noticed Adrien's distraction, so patting a hand through his back and hugged him, resting her head on his shoulder, to which he responded with a gentle kiss on her forehead,

"You guys make a beautiful couple," I mumbled though they heard me speak. A pang of guilt trespassed me as I remembered that yes, they made an amazing couple, and they always had, I had to confess, and perhaps now would be the best moment. "You guys, I need to tell you something else," I began, and they looked at me, with the sweetest glance, as they were now holding hands, "you guys are a goals couple, and I've always known you were, but there's something I have to confess, it's something that's been eating me alive for way too long,"

"I don't think you have more shocking revelations that the ones we received today," Adrien smiled sadly, maybe he had a point, they have been through a lot, this couldn't possibly be that bad,

"You guys already knew your identities, in fact, you guys were a couple, once upon a time,"

"What are you talking about? I think we would remember something like that," Ladybug snickered,

"No, you wouldn't, because I made sure you didn't,"

Silence reigned in the room for a couple of moments that it took for them to understand this information, so I continued,

"You guys were eager to tell each other who you were, and you did, you were a couple for about an hour, but then I had to..."

"Are you saying," Ladybug spoke with the icy voice she used with me on the day we met, "that you enchanted us?" Chat didn't say anything, instead, he examined me behind a scowl as if he was looking at a stranger,

"No, I mean, yeah, but I had a reason, you see..."

"You lied to us?" she cut me off, and I sighed,

"yes," I admitted, not feeling able to argue with her anymore,

"We gave you a chance, Alba, I knew this, how could I have been so stupid!" She stood up from her seat abruptly, "How many times did you do it? How many times did you pretend to be our friend only to mock us erasing our memories?"

"It's not like that, I swear,"

"And how can we believe you?"

"Marinette, we've known each other for years, you know I would never..."

"Wouldn't you? You just confessed you already did!" She was silent for a moment, "Get out of my house," I looked at her in disbelief, but every hint of the friend I loved was gone, shattered into a million pieces. I looked at Adrien pleadingly, but his trust in me was shattered as well, after all, he had been wrong before, and he wasn't prepared to do it again, nor did he have the mental strength to deal with this right now,

"Marinette, use your head, why would I..."

"My head is telling me to snatch your miraculous and return it to Master Fu right now."

A tear slid through my cheek, there were so many things I could have said, so many things I could have said to defend myself, I could have told them that it wasn't me who wanted to erase her memories, but rather that it was a command from Bunix, but I couldn't. The words got caught in my throat, 'cause I could feel their pain.

After so long knowing each other, they had become a part of me, their pain was my pain, their happiness was my happiness, and if they felt betrayed, I felt betrayed. I could feel them. I could hear the sound of the trust we had built over the past years shattering into a million pieces right in front of me, sliding from my fingers before I could stop it. But the thought of losing Mishell was the one that made me flee. I could deal with them later, but being as angry as she was then, Marinette was able to fulfill her threat.

It took them a while to settle down a little, though the feeling of distrust remained. Adrien decided it was better if he just went home, he wanted to be alone with his thoughts for a while, even if it was in that cold, and now terrible, house he once called home. Both of them had a lot of thinking and planning to do, but at least they had each other now, and they knew they could count on each other.

As for me, I went home. And allowed myself to cry the tears I had been holding since the day I enchanted my first victim.

"They're never going to forgive me, Mishell," I cried hiding my face on the pillow,

"I'm sure if they let you explain, they would understand," She sat on my pillow to comfort me,

"They won't listen, they're too stubborn, especially Ladybug." I sobbed, "And they're right, you know? I did betray them, even if I only did it once and I had a good reason to, the fact remains that I betrayed them, and they have no way of knowing whether I'm telling the truth or not,"

"What if you write to them," She suggested after a few moments, stroking my hair with her paw,

"Write? Like a letter?" I lifted my head from the pillow to face my kwami, maybe she was onto something,

"Doesn't have to be a letter, just tell them what happened, you can start from the beginning if you want,"

"I think I can do that," I headed to my desk and opened my computer, letting the words flow.

It has taken me several weeks, but I think I was finally able to write everything I knew from your story, gathering the details I found in your minds, and adding a few things about me, only for you to know how much I love you and how sorry I am for what I did.

I'm devastated that you're still not talking to me, but I hope this helps you to understand. Your story is the most beautiful I've heard, and I'm glad to be a part of it. You are destined for greater things than you can ever imagine, but I'm afraid things won't always go the way we want them to.

Some people are destined to be the main characters, while others are meant to be side characters. I'm just happy to be a part of the story.

I hope you find it in your hearts to forgive me.

Yours forever,

Sirena.

_**We will be together in the night,** _

_**Like in the day when everything shines** _

_**will be our love for infinity!** _


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

_**Malgré ce grand mur qui nous sépare** _

_**l'amour traversé de part en part** _

_**Nous sommes ensemble une force rare** _

One night, when the rain was pouring and the city was dark, a tap was heard on Marinette's window. The same one she heard the night before and the night before that. It was the sign that the man she loved had come to visit. She would never grow old of that beautiful sound.

"Good evening my Lady," The familiar black cat kissed her hand as he climbed into the room,

"Chat, you're pouring wet!" She exclaimed rushing to find a towel while Chat detransformed sitting on the floor. When she came back, she looked at Adrien with a quizzical look. "Why are you seating on the floor?"

"You said it yourself," He said, giving Plagg a tiny piece of cheese that he carried on his pocket, "I'm wet, and I didn't want to soak your bedroom,"

With a raised eyebrow, she threw the towel on his head. She kneeled in front of him and began to dry his hair with the towel. When she revealed his face, she looked at him with gleaming eyes and kissed his nose quickly just before throwing the towel back on his face.

"Only your hair is wet, the rest of you is perfectly dry," she said, sitting on her desk chair trying to hide her flustered face,

"Then why are you running away from me?" He stood up and hugged her from behind the chair, resting his head on her shoulder,

"I'm not running away from you, I'm... I'm..."

"See, you have nothing to say in your defense," He looked at her from the corner of his eye,

"You know what, I'm actually glad you're here," She stood up abruptly, escaping from Adrien's grasp, leaving him kneeling on the floor,

"If you're so glad why did you..."

"We need to talk," Adrien's face paled and his eyes widened at the sudden interruption,

"Mari, we've been dating for little more than a week and you already want to break up with me? Was it something I did?" He held his breath waiting for her answer,

"What? No, silly." she giggled, much to Adrien's relief, "We need to talk about... about Hawk Moth," She said, being careful with her word choice, because she knew that the matter was still very delicate for Adrien,

"You mean my father," He groaned, slumping on Marinette's desk chair. She nodded,

"I know we agreed to wait until you came to terms with the idea of fighting you father, but we will have to confront him eventually,"

"I know, I know, it's just..." He pressed his lips together and stared at his hands, "I don't know if I can to it." Adrien was half expecting that Marinette would snap at him, the way Ladybug would have, but instead the next thing he felt were her hands cupping his face,

"I'm on your side, kitty, don't forget that,"

Adrien couldn't help it when a single tear rolled down his cheek. Marinette brushed it off and looked at him in the eye,

"It's you and me against the world," He shrugged, smiling sadly at her.

She brushed his hair with her hand and whispered, "Always," pressing a single kiss on his forehead.

o0o

"So, they're not talking to you at all?" Alix asked Alba one day while they were sitting on the benches of the soccer field eating their lunch,

"They have a good reason not to, I always knew that enchanting them was not a good idea," Alba sighed,

"But it was for a good cause! Ladybug and Chat Noir have to see that someday!"

"The end doesn't justify the means, I can only hope they will forgive me,"

"I'm sure they will," Alix smiled taking a bite of her sandwich. "So, what did you do to Adrien and Marinette?" Alix asked with her mouth full, making Alba choke on her drink,

"What do you mean?" She hid her face with one hand trying to hide her flustered expression, but the coughs were not helping,

"I mean, you guys used to be super close, they even made you a surprise party and all, and now I haven't seen you talk to them in weeks, not even with Adrien! I thought you guys were partners in a project or something,"

"Well, we did the project and turned it in, there's not much to it,"

"But are you guys in a feud or something? Did you do something to them as you did with Ladybug and Chat Noir?"

"No, we just haven't found a lot of time to talk, that's all." She shrugged, but the truth was that Alba completed said project by herself, mainly because Adrien had a lot to think about those days, and a silly school project was not one of them, also, he didn't want to talk to her, plus now that her job finding Hawk Moth was done, she suddenly found herself with a lot of free time.

At some point during their conversation, Marinette, Adrien, Alya and Nino walked through the soccer field and sat on a blanket under the shade of a tree. Alba was trying to read what they were thinking about, but she suddenly felt a sharp pain hit her head. She pressed both her hands on her forehead making her drop her drink on the bench.

The sticky substance fell next to Alix, making her squeal when a drop fell on her pants,

"Alba, what's wrong with you?" she fumed, standing abruptly from her seat, but then noticing Alba's stance, she leaned in to touch her shoulder, "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, it's just one of my migraines," Alba tried to comfort her, but her eyes were still shut tight,

"I think you should go home, you look pale," she touched her hand on her forehead "and you sweating cold! Alba, you definitely have to go home,"

"Yeah, I'm not feeling well, it's been like this the whole day, I just have a class left but... I'll talk to the nurse and go home."

So she said and so she did, and once she was safe at home, she slumped on her bed and closed her eyes shut,

"I'm okay, I'm okay," she repeated to herself until a bright white light shone on her bedroom and then, she wasn't alone anymore,

"Alba, is that really you?" A familiar voice asked her, so she opened her eyes to see who was speaking,

"Bunix?" It was Bunix all right, but she looked different than the last time she saw her, she was younger, younger than she had ever seen her, in fact, she looked pretty much like the Alix she had been talking to just a few minutes ago.

"I can't believe it worked!" She chimed,

"Did... did you come from the future?" Alba asked, closing her eyes shut, realizing that she shouldn't look at her if she didn't want to spoil the future,

"Yeah, I came to find you."

"Find me?" Alba asked seating on her bed, still with her eyes closed, "Why?"

"There's something I need to ask you," she said looking sheepishly at her feet.

"Why not ask the future me?" Alba asked, but Bunix didn't say anything for a while. In fact, she was quiet for so long that Alba had to open her eyes to make sure she was still there; however, when she did, she was met with Bunix train of thoughts instead.

"I see." Alba said with a straight smile, "what did you have to ask then? I'll answer anything." As she often did with Alix, Alba answered every single one of Bunix questions with a chill voice, but being vague enough not to reveal too much information.

She was feeling well all of a sudden and all of her pain was gone, and she was feeling hopeful and happy again. She was at peace. A peace that can only be described as a peace that surpasses all understanding.

"I should go back now, I don't want you to find out any more than you should," Bunix giggled nervously,

"Before you go, can I ask you a favor?" Alba finally stood from her bed and walked readily to her desk, "There is something I want you to give to Ladybug and Chat,"

"What is it?" Alba handed her a heavy purple binder with a thick amount of papers inside,

"It's a letter I wrote for them," Alba couldn't help but giggled at Bunix's scandalized expression, "I know, I know, who writes a 200 pages letter? But it's more than just that, it explains their story, as well as my reason behind enchanting them, I began writing and couldn't stop, I finished it just a few nights ago,"

"Why don't you give it to them yourself?" She held the document close to her chest as if it was the most precious thing in the world, yet as if it was the heaviest,

"Because they won't listen to me right now, but I think in the future they will," Alba smiled broadly although her eyes were watery, "Don't read it though, I don't want you to find out who they are before time,"

"Who? Adrien and Marinette?" Alba's eyes widened at the revelation, and now it was Bunix' time to giggle, "I found out the moment I entered my burrow for the first time,"

"Oh, well then it's okay if you read it,"

Bunix smiled awkwardly before adding, "It's time for me to go back to my time, but it was great to see you,"

"I'm always glad to help,"

A bright light illuminated Alba's room as Bunix opened her burrow but before stepping into it she turned around to see Alba. She ran towards her and hugged her tightly, "They will forgive you, don't worry about it,"

"There, there, we'll see each other soon," Alba assured her, and she went back into her portal, closing it and erasing every sign that she was ever there.

With a newly found sense of confidence, Alba went back to her desk and began to write her heart out, since it was the one thing, she loved the most.

It was a new pack of letters that she would soon give to the person she trusted the most.

o0o

During the next few days, Alba did something she had been afraid to do. She asked her crush out.

"The thing is, you're still my student, and..." Gerald told her with an amused smile,

"Oh, forget about that," she interrupted him with a wave of her hand, "But if it's _that_ important to you we could meet at a coffee shop I know, it's pretty far away from here, I bet no one would recognize us if we went there,"

He smiled broadly, and Alba could see how excited he was about finally being able to go on a date with her. He had waited patiently for her, and it seemed like his patience was finally paying off.

Later that afternoon, Alba arrived early at that well-known coffee shop. Gerald hadn't arrived yet, so she greeted the bartender saying, "You owe me 20€," while she took a seat in front of the counter, in front of the bartender,

"Beg your pardon?" Master Fu turned to greet her, "If I'm not mistaken, your bet was on MariChat, and as far as I know LadyNoir won the round," He boasted " _You_ owe _me_ 20€,"

"Nono, don't come at me with that, he found out who she was when he went to visit Mari, so MariChat won,"

"Yes, but Chat saw Ladybug transform, thus breaking the love square, LadyNoir won," Alba was about to protest a little bit more, but then the doorbell rang as a couple entered the shop. She turned around to see them and it turned out that they were no other than the couple they had been talking about.

Alba jumped out of her seat in hid behind the counter before they saw her, but they looked so cute together, she stared at them for a moment and thought they were both worth losing a bet. Their smiles shone brighter than the sun. They were just worth everything to her.

But they wouldn't believe her if she told them, so she did the only sensible thing she could think of at the moment. She crawled her way next to Master Fu and through the kitchen of the coffee shop until she reached the back door and flashed out of there, where she coincidentally crashed onto the one she had been waiting for,

"Gerald! Boy am I glad to see _you_ , but we can't stay here, come on let's go somewhere else," He was about to say something when she grabbed his hand and led him to a park nearby the shop and sat him on a bench, quickly taking her seat next to him,

"Something is troubling you," he tried to look at her in the eye, but she laid her head on his shoulder,

"Can I trust you?" She asked already knowing the answer,

"Of course," He answered with his deep, velvety voice, while he grabbed her hand on his. He was visibly unaccustomed to being this close to Alba, which was a great contrast to how Alba was acting, who snuggled his arm as if she had been in a relationship with him her entire life, "You know you can talk to me about anything,"

"I know, there are some things I want you to know," and with a sigh, she began to tell her story, "It all started when I found an anklet..."

o0o

"Akuma alert, Akuma alert, proceed to the library calmly, Ladybug and Chat Noir will take care of the problem," the school's speaker kept repeating. Some students groaned while others limited themselves to picking up their stuff. Since this was the last hour of the day, the Akuma alarm meant they could go home; however, these were their last weeks of school, and missing classes meant that they would have to come until the very last day to make up for the lost time.

Everyone was leaving for the library, as protocol dictated, except for two students who looked at each other for confirmation and nodded with determined looks,

"Who do you think it could be this time?" Adrien whispered to Marinette once they were side by side,

"Probably Sightseer, it's always him lately," Marinette answered rolling her eyes. Adrien laughed and they headed towards the door,

"Marinette, Adrien," somebody called for them from inside the room just when they headed out. Alba, noticing they were still ignoring her, felt dizzy all of a sudden and collapsed into the floor, only to be helped by professor LeBeau.

But the heroes didn't hear the commotion behind them, so they continued in their way.

They reached the library and signed their names on the checklist so that nobody suspected they had disappeared, then they found their way out of the library and out of the school by climbing out of a window.

"Ladies first," Adrien bowed, making Marinette giggle,

"Of course you would say that, but you'll have to give me a boost,"

Adrien helped Marinette out of the window and once she was out, she helped him by pulling his shirt to get him out of the building. Once they were sure nobody had seen them, they hid in the shadow of a tree and transformed into Ladybug and Chat Noir.

"I bet 5€ it's sightseer," Chat told Ladybug once they were at a safe distance from the school,

"What makes you so sure?" She asked landing on a chimney,

"It's Thursday, he always gets akumatized on Thursdays, or at least he has for the last three months," He explained putting his hand on his chin,

"Maybe, but he usually gets akumatized at night," Ladybug explained pulling out her yo-yo to scan the city, until she found what she was looking for, on top of the Eifel Tower, Sightseer stood waving his cane in the air. Ladybug grimaced and turned to see her partner, "How about I take you to the movies instead of the 5€?"

"That's more money, you know?" He told her with a satisfied look,

"Well, I think it's a win-win situation," Ladybug took her yo-yo and transformed it into a pair of wings, which she used to fly on the direction of the Eiffel tower. Chat followed running beside her,

"I still want my 5€ though," He ran next to her,

"Why? Don't you wanna go on a date with me?"

"You're my girlfriend, I'll get to go on dates with you anytime, but how often do I get 5€ from you?" Ladybug giggled at the comment but then focused on the Akuma they were just about to meet, and it was a good thing because in just a few seconds they reached the top of the Eifel tower.

"We meet again, Ladybug and Chat Noir," Sightseer laughed,

"We meet so many times we should start a support group," Chat snapped back,

"The stars tell me..."

"Yeah, yeah, the stars," Ladybug interrupted him, "We've been through this a hundred times, whatever the 'stars' say, we'll defeat you as we have the other 20 times,"

"Ah, but this time I brought a friend," He turned around to make way for a giant hourglass that appeared behind him,

"Is that a..."

"A sentimonster!" Chat yelled just when it began to fall on their direction, luckily though, they managed to move out of the way before it smashed them.

This time other than the cane, Sightseer had a crystal ball on his right hand, which he apparently used to control the hourglass that kept chasing the heroes around the top floor of the tower until Ladybug thought of something and motioned Chat to follow her. Ladybug led the way for Chat and the hourglass, and they followed swiftly while Sightseer laughed hysterically. Such was his laugh that he didn't notice that Ladybug was leading the hourglass right unto him. When he finally opened his eyes to see, they were so close to him that he panicked, throwing the crystal ball into the air,

"I got it," Chat yelled and jumped to catch it, destroying it with his cataclysm on the way. The hourglass was about to fall on top of Ladybug and Sightseer, but it disappeared before it even touched them.

Out of the shattered crystal ball on Chat's hand flew a small feather flew out. Which Ladybug captured, purifying the Amok, but before she was ready to fight back, Sightseer appeared to form a portal behind them, hitting Ladybug hard on the back of her head,

"No!" Chat yelled when an unconscious Ladybug fell on his arms. He placed her gently on the floor and growled to Sightseer, "You! Stop this,"

"You think it'll be so e..."

"I'm not talking to you, Hawk Moth, show yourself!" Chat sneered, still kneeling next to Ladybug's unconscious body. Then, a dark purple butterfly appeared on Sightseer's face, and it was no longer his high-pitched voice coming from his mouth,

"What is it Chat Noir, are you ready to give up your miraculous?" The dark voice spoke,

"I've had it with you and your tricks," He stood up to face him, at the same time that Ladybug began to open her eyes, "I didn't want things to get to this point, but I've had it with your tricks! If you don't show yourself now, I'm gonna go find you," He demanded,

"Chat, what are you doing," Ladybug said still laying the on the floor but Chat didn't listen

"Is that so? And how are you supposed to do that?"

"I know who you are, Gabriel Agreste, and I know where to find you,"

The dark voice didn't speak for a long moment, and then Sightseer's transformation fell and a purified Akuma flew from his cane, leaving good old Darren in his place,

"You're not gonna escape this easily Hawk Moth," He began to run in the direction of his house, but Ladybug caught his tail,

"What do you think you're doing?" She said kneeling on the floor, rubbing the back of her head,

"I've been patient with him, hoping he could change, but I've had enough, I'm gonna go fight him," He barked,

"But you already used your cataclysm, you could transform any minute, plus he could use you..."

"I know what he can do, I've thought about this a dozen times, and I'm ready,"

"Then I'm going right behind you, we're in this together," She said, but when she stood up, she felt dizzy and fell back into Chat's arms,

"You're not well, M'Lady, rest for a moment, I'll call you when I find him,"

"But, Chat..." She was about to say something but Chat placed her next to an iron pillar and jumped out of her reach,

When Chat arrived at the Agreste mansion, Gabriel Agreste was rushing down the steps of his front yard to his parked car, but with a backflip, Chat landed on top of the car, blocking the way for the man,

"Going somewhere?"

Gabriel gasped, stumbled, and fell backward, but Chat grabbed him from his ascot tie preventing him from falling,

"I think you're mistaken, Chat Noir, I'm not who..."

"Don't come at me with that, I know who you are," In that moment, the tie loosened from Gabriel's shirt, making him fall and revealing a purple brooch, which Chat recognized as the butterfly miraculous from the miraculous spell book.

Gabriel tried to crawl away, but Chat leaped and blocked his path from the other side,

"Leave me alone Chat Noir, you have the wrong person,"

"If you're not Hawk Moth, then you won't mind if I take this," He motioned to grab the brooch, but Gabriel caught his hand and shoved him to the floor. Gabriel then stood up and said,

"Nooroo, dark wings rise," transforming into Hawk Moth, much to Chat's disappointment. If he ever had any doubts about his father's identity, now there was no way to deny it. "If it is a fight that you wanted, then a fight you will have," He charged at Chat, but before he could reach him, Ladybug's yo-yo grabbed him and pulled him to the metro station in front of the house, where she stood.

An enraged Hawk Moth pulled her yo-yo and threw her out of the way. Just when Chat came running at him, chanting "cataclysm," pointing at Hawk Moth's cane. But Hawk Moth moved out of the way, and Chat's cataclysm touched the floor opening a hole on the cement, big enough for the three of them to fall.

"Was it the hit on my head or did you just use your cataclysm for a second time?" Ladybug asked making a way through the debris Chat had created

Chat looked at his ring, which had three pawprints in it,

"We'll find out later, let's just be thankful now," They stood up scanning their surroundings thinking that they had reached a part of the metro, but no, instead it seemed like an underground chamber filled with plants and water, yet the most striking view was Hawk Moth, who stood protectively in front of something about his size.

"Back off," He warned them harshly pointing at them with his cane, but they kept marching forward,

Maybe more as a threat than for real damage, Chat called his cataclysm which appeared, again, on his hand. He charged towards Hawk Moth, again, pointing at his cane, but he moved out of the way, and Chat was faced with his mother's dormant face.

Great was his surprise when he saw her, but Hawk Moth's was even greater when Chat called her "Mother,"

He didn't miss a second and whacked Chat Noir away from Emilie, with enough strength to send him flying to the Eifel Tower.

Ladybug and Hawk Moth followed him, though Ladybug arrived a few seconds faster since she was using her wings. She kneeled next to Chat and helped him stand up, while the few people that were still passing by moved aside, except for two of them, who hid behind one of the pillars of the tower.

"So, it _is_ you," Hawk Moth stalked towards them, "I've suspected it was you for a long time, but I thought it was wishful thinking,"

"You would wish it wasn't me," Chat sneered,

"Now you understand why I'm doing this, I want to save your mother, but I can only do it if I have your miraculous,"

Chat stood unmoved by his speech, since he had heard it on a loop on his head since the day Alba told him about his mother. He was prepared for this moment, and nothing Hawk Moth said could undermine his confidence.

"You don't want to deal with the ultimate power, it'll...," Ladybug began but was cut off by Hawk Moth

"Silence, insect! I'm not talking to you; I'm talking to my son."

"I might be your son, but I'm not helping you in your schemes," Chat stood tall, conscious of his active cataclysm on his right hand,

"And what about your mother? Wouldn't you help her?" Hawk Moth grunted,

"I'll find a way to help her. One that doesn't include giving you all the power in the world,"

Hawk Moth clenched his teeth and fists, frustrated because he couldn't feel any negative emotions emanating from the superhero. He was powerless against him. He then turned to look at Ladybug, whose arm was grasped around Chat's,

"You," He growled at Ladybug, "You turned my son against me," He grabbed his cane and pulled the top part, revealing a long sword, which he threw at Ladybug. She could have dodged it had it not been for the pounding wound on her head, but something pushed her out of the way, and they heard the sound of metal cutting flesh.

Ladybug opened her eyes to find herself safe on top of Chat Noir, whose Cataclysm had touched one of the Eifel Tower's pillars, and now pieces of metal were scattered around the floor. But what frightened her the most was the person who stood before them with a sword protruding from her upper abdomen. She fell on her knees only to be captured by Ladybug,

"Alba, what are you... Why did you..."

"Hawk Moth," She said taking a raspy breath, "Don't let him get away," But they didn't listen, instead Ladybug and Chat scanned her looking staring mostly at the sword and wondering if they should pull it out or not. In the end, it wasn't necessary, because the sword disappeared from her abdomen, making blood pour out of her wound,

"Hawk Moth just detransformed," another, breathless deeper voice spoke to them, "I'll take care of her, you go get him,"

"Monsieur LeBeau?" Ladybug and Chat said in unison,

"Go get him," Alba whispered "Bring him to me,"

Ladybug and Chat looked at each other and began running to find him.

They went back to the Agreste Mansion, the underground chamber and under the metro until they found him about to take the next train. Ladybug grabbed him with her yo-yo and dragged an outraged Gabriel Agreste out of the metro station,

Meanwhile, Alba laid bleeding heavily on Gerald's arms, but somehow found the strength to call Mishell and transform. The transformation made her wound stop bleeding for a moment, but then she began to bleed through her costume,

"This is it then?" Gerald asked as a single tear rolled down his cheek,

"Will you sing for me?" She asked, with a little more strength now. Gerald began to hum and then sing with his baritone voice, the song, the one that made them meet,

" _Puede que pase un año mas de una vez,_

_sin que te pueda ver,_

_pero el amor es mas fuerte_

_Puede que el tiempo nos aleje otra vez_

_sin saber donde estes,_

_pero el amor es mas fuerte"_

While he was still singing, letting his tears roll freely, Ladybug and Chat arrived dragging a protesting Gabriel Agreste. It was now Sirena's turn to sing.

" _Today's events you must forget,_

_Your son is just Adrien Agreste,_

_The one you saw is not your heir,_

_Forget it all, but forever this remains,_

_Today your reign of terror will end."_

Every word of her chant came out strongly, but the last one was more of a hush, and having sung that last note, she took a deep breath and her chest grew still.

Her transformation fell and an exhausted Mishell appeared from her miraculous, but she wasn't the only one that was drained,

"Alba?" Ladybug said, kneeling next to her still body, "Alba, talk to me, I'm sorry," she cried, "I'm sorry I didn't believe you, I... I was mad, you were right, you were right about everything,"

Chat put a hand on Ladybug's shoulder and whispered, "she's..." but she shoved him off and grabbed Alba on her arms, shaking her slightly. But seeing that she didn't move, made her tears fall faster,

"Ladybug," Gerald's kind, yet watery, eyes met hers, and she had to blink away the tears, "Use your power, maybe... maybe there's still time," his voice broke as he spoke, but a tender smile never left his eyes,

"Right, my miraculous," Ladybug stood up and grabbed her yo-yo, fixing everything around her, The Eifel Tower, the hole on the floor next to the metro and even Alba's wound.

The blood stopped, the wound closed, but no breathing came out of her parted lips, nor did her heart began to beat. But despite the weeping around her, even in her death, a smile was plastered in her face.

_**Despite this great wall between us,** _

_**Love crossed through.** _

_**We are together, a rare force!** _

[for those of you that don't know the song or don't speak Spanish, here's "Un Año" with English subs

watch?v=zLq6u05vhCk


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

_**Pour toi je patienterai tout une vie** _

_**Car oui je t'aime, à la folie** _

_**je t'aimerai, à l'infini.** _

Gabriel Agreste stood trial for his crimes but was found innocent of most of his charges, except for the murder of Alba Thomas and of course, terrorizing Paris.

He got 20 years.

"He should have gotten more,"

"Poor Adrien,"

"Do you think Adrien knew?"

"He was a monster,"

"I hope we never hear from him again."

Those were some of the comments that tormented Adrien for the days following his father's imprisonment. The school became a dark place for him to be in, but his house was worse. It became even more haunting now that his father was gone and he knew his mother was sleeping somewhere around there and that he had no way to access her sleeping chamber.

He hadn't been visiting Marinette either, in fact, he hadn't spoken a word to her since they defeated Hawk Moth. He had been dealing with all of that alone. He had no one to comfort him, just Plagg, but for some odd reason, he wasn't much of a comfort.

He avoided his house as much as possible, so people would spot Chat Noir sleeping in the weirdest places, like a rooftop, a bathroom in a restaurant, a storage room, anywhere. Anywhere but his house.

As for Marinette, she didn't leave her house for days, she didn't even leave her bedroom. She remembered Adelynn Mason and how she couldn't do anything to save her when she fell off the Eiffel Tower, but now, the lifeless face she saw every time she closed her eyes was not Adelynn's, it was Alba's.

Alba had been her friend for so long, a frequent company from school to home, a great neighbor, and an attentive confidant. How was it that she threw all that away just because she confessed to erasing her memory once? Marinette couldn't remember why she was mad at her anymore, after all, she had proven more than once that she was being sincere.

"Marinette," Tikki said to Marinette a few days after Hawk Moth's defeat. "Marinette, you've been there for days now, you need to get up and take a shower," Her bedroom was dark and cozy, and she was curled up under her bedsheets where she was safe from everything and anyone, why was Tikki harassing her?

"Why, what's the point?" She mumbled, snuggling in her cocoon of bedsheets.

"The world hasn't ended Marinette, you need to get up and face what's coming,"

"Why? Hawk Moth is defeated, I've fulfilled my purpose in life, now I'm ready to die as well," Marinette sobbed,

"Marinette, don't cry, Alba wouldn't want it," Tikki flew next to Marinette and patted her shoulder tenderly,

"Actually," She sniffed, sitting on her bed for the first time in days, "I think I should return you to Master Fu, now that everything has been dealt with,"

"Marinette, I don't think..."

"And Chat should also return his miraculous, and he would go back to be..." Her eyes widened as she remembered, "Adrien! I haven't seen him in days, how is he? His dad... He's all by himself now, I need to find him," She blurted out, jumping from her bed and rushing to the lower level of her bedroom,

"If you're really about to visit your boyfriend, how about that shower I mentioned?" Tikki followed her owner trying to keep up with her,

Marinette smelled the clothes she was wearing, making a disgusted face she hurried to her bathroom, much to Tikki's amusement.

With a renewed sense of purpose, Marinette left her bedroom, only to be greeted with the astonished faces of her parents who marveled at the sight of her leaving her room. They hugged her and told her they understood her pain and that they all loved Alba too.

Marinette was moved by her parent's words, and she wanted to stay there, safe between their embrace, but something kept her, a sense of urgency. She needed to find her boyfriend, and quick.

She left for Adrien's house, but nobody answered when she rang the doorbell.

"It doesn't make sense Tikki," she told the kwami hiding in her purse, "It's Sunday afternoon, Adrien is always at home on a Sunday afternoon,"

"Maybe he's not receiving any visitors," Tikki guessed,

"Well, I'm not just any visitor, come on Tikki, it's time for Ladybug to knock on Adrien's window,"

o0o

Adrien sat on his bed staring at a wall for hours on end. Plagg had covered him with a blanket at some point in the day when he saw him shivering, but it didn't help, the cold feeling came from inside.

His room seemed bigger, emptier than it had before, even though he hadn't changed a thing. Everything on his house followed that pattern, bigger, emptier, abandoned, perfectly still, quiet.

Quiet... a knock on his window broke the silence and took him out of his tormenting thoughts. He turned to his great window for the first time in hours and saw Ladybug, his Ladybug, waving at him from the outside world. He stood up slowly to open it for her, but returned to his previous position soon after,

"Hello to you too, kitty," Ladybug told him, taking a seat next to him on the bed.

"What are you doing here?" He said without looking at her, fixing his gaze permanently on the wall,

"I came to check on you, you're..."

"You shouldn't be here,"

"Adrien, I..."

"I'm fine if that's what you wanted to know, I have this huge house all to myself, my father is in prison, Natalie is in the hospital and I gave Gorilla the day off. I'm perfectly fine alone, nothing's gonna happen to me,"

"Adrien," She placed a hand on his shoulder, but he shoved it off as if it burned him,

"I'm leaving," He told her as if he was talking about the weather, "I thought you should know,"

"You're leaving? where?"

"America, I was accepted at a university there, I'll leave after graduation,"

"Oh, so you're leaving, leaving?" Ladybug was taken aback for a moment, "should I be happy for you?"

"Why not?"

"It's just... what about Chat Noir, what about us?"

"Chat Noir's job is done, and us... I think we're done too,"

"We're done? You mean we're over? Are you breaking up with me?" Ladybug squealed,

"It's probably for the best, you wouldn't want to be with the son of a criminal, who is suspect of being an accomplice,"

"Adrien, what are you talking about? I love you, I..." tears threatened to fall from her eyes, but she knew, she just knew that something was not right with Adrien, he didn't mean what he was saying. "We're in this together, Adrien," she put her hand on his, and this time he didn't shove it off but he turned his face away, "It's you and me against the world," Marinette could hear him sniffing so she used her free hand to turn his face towards her to make him look at her, "Always," she finished for him, and then the tears he had been holding for years, the one he held when his mother disappeared began to roll down his cheeks, one by one until a tear became a river, and a river began an ocean of hidden emotions he had kept a secret for far too long,

"It's just too much," He leaned in and hugged Ladybug's waist, resting his head on her shoulder. Ladybug let him cry, patting him on the back and shedding a few tears herself in the prosses. Of course, he would be this sad, he was practically an orphan now, but maybe worse, since both of his parents were alive but completely out of his reach.

Ladybug let him cry as much as he needed, and at some point, she let him rest his head on her lap while she stroked his hair slowly, following the rhythm of his falling tears. This was the man she loved, the one that had held her just like that when she was sad or tired, the one that made her laugh at the least likely of occasions. It was her time to be strong for him, and he let her.

"Have you talked to him?" Ladybug asked when she noticed that the tears were ceasing,

"No," He answered in a hoarse voice, "I have nothing to tell him,"

"Adrien, I need you to listen to me," She sighed. "Whatever it is that you decide to do, just know that you can count on me, it's a promise. Which is why I'm not letting you break up with me,"

"Are you sure about that? My life is a mess right now," He sat up taking a deep breath and cleaning his tears with the back of his hand

"My life has always been a mess and it didn't stop you, besides, isn't it Ladybug's job to clean a mess? Trust me, I've seen worst,"

"I don't think you have," He joked,

"Let's start with the basics, when was the last time you took a shower?"

o0o

Later that day, Adrien and Marinette decided to go out for a walk. A walk that led them to Master Fu's coffee shop. The place was warm and cozy, and the smell of coffee and sweets permeated their nostrils,

"Ah, Adrien, Marinette, welcome back," The small man greeted them with a smile, "What brings you to my humble coffee shop,"

"We came to return our miraculous," Marinette said first, handing Master Fu a small black box that contained the miraculous earrings. Adrien did the same and placed his box next to Marinette's,

"Our mission is done, Paris does not need its superheroes anymore,"

Master Fu was taken aback by their action since he wasn't expecting them to return their miraculous so soon after defeating Hawk Moth,

"Oh, and I almost forgot," Marinette took another black box out of her purse, but she couldn't bring herself to saying whose it was or why she was returning it. When Master Fu opened it, he revealed the 5-pearl anklet of the fish miraculous. Master Fu smiled sadly at the object and then motioned for them to follow him to the kitchen.

The kitchen was small and crowded with pans and pots. There were two doors, one that led to the outside and another one that led to a small storage room. From the first door came out a familiar person carrying an empty tray and stopping slowly when he saw who was standing before him,

"Nino?" Adrien and Marinette said at the same time,

"Oh, hi guys," He answered with a broad smile,

"You're late, child," Master Fu addressed him,

"Sorry Dud... I mean Monsieur Fu, I'll... I'll stay longer to cover for my shift,"

"You work here?" Adrien asked him,

"Since when?" Marinette continued,

"Not that long ago, it was supposed to be a seasonal job, but Monsieur Fu pays well and lets me do homework in here, so I think I'm here to stay,"

"You won't be staying anywhere if you don't go to take your place at the counter." Master Fu pointed for him to leave,

"Right, whatever you say Dud... I mean Monsieur Fu," They stayed and watched Nino go to the counter before Master Fu said,

"Follow me, children, there's something I want you to see," He led them to the storage room, which was cluttered with all kinds of containers, cleaners, mops and other cleaning utensils. It was barely big enough for the three of them to fit, but then, Master Fu pulled out a cardboard box, and out of the box a phonograph. He pulled out the phonograph and opened it using some kind of pin or passcode. Once the phonograph opened, the miraculous box emerged.

He opened the box and placed the fish miraculous in one of the drawers, then, he placed the ring and the earrings in the middle of the box, but there was something that bothered Marinette. Three miraculous were missing, of course, one of them was the turtle miraculous, but Master Fu had that one,

"Wait, where are the Moth and the Peacock miraculous?" Marinette asked,

"You never brought them to me," Master Fu shrugged,

"You never retrieved it?" Marinette asked Adrien,

"I told you I haven't talked to that man since we defeat him, plus I thought you got it," Adrien defended himself,

"Gabriel Agreste doesn't have it either," Master Fu stepped in,

"What?" Both of them exclaimed at the revelation,

"I had Wayzz sneak on the jail to look through his belongings, but the miraculous wasn't there,"

"Well, then we have to find them," Adrien said sternly,

"There's no rush, you guys have been through a lot, besides, the miraculous are dormant, there's no way you will find them like that,"

"Are we supposed to wait until someone activates them?" Marinette asked

"Wayzz will sense if one of them is activated, but for now I think you have earned a rest from your duties as superheroes, at least for now, I will find you if anything happens." Master Fu sighed, "You, children have been through a lot, and have fought showing great courage and strength, well done, Ladybug, well done, Chat Noir." He bowed his head before them and they did the same. Even if it was hard to detach themselves from their miraculous, saying goodbye brought a sense of relief. It meant that they would no longer have to fight. They would finally be able to rest.

o0o

That night, however, Adrien found himself completely alone and restless, since he didn't even have Plagg now. The kwami had been filling a void he didn't know he had, and now he was gone too. When he entered his room, it was darker than it had been before, it was as if Plagg took with him the little light that lasted in that big room, and now he was truly alone.

That was until he heard the doorbell ring, the only sound that clung him to reality. He rushed down the stairs without even checking who it was, and when he opened the door, among the darkness of the night, there she was, the luminous form of Marinette,

"I figured you wouldn't want to be alone tonight," She said, and he rushed towards her, grabbed her face and kissed her. He hugged her tight as if she would scape him if he didn't, but she didn't fall behind. She kissed him gently on the lips and caressed his hair while a tear rolled down his cheek,

"I don't want to be here tonight," He whispered breathlessly pressing his forehead against Marinette's, who ran her thumb over his cheek and smiled gladly at him,

"Come on, there are some people that are waiting to see you." She grabbed his hand and led him towards her house. The walk was slow but steady, and they arrived at the bakery hand in hand, where she was greeted by her parents,

"Adrien dear, we're so glad you're here," Sabine greeted him a warm hug, which Tom mimicked, but being bigger and stronger, he caught the two of them in an even tighter hug,

"Mom, Dad, there's something I want you to know," Marinette giggled, while Tom still hugged Adrien and Sabine keeping their feet away from the floor,

"What is it, my dear?" Sabine struggled to say,

"Adrien is my boyfriend,"

"Your boyfriend?" Tom let go of the hug dropping the two of them on the floor. Adrien rubbed his behind, where he had fallen, but then Tom picked him up, squinting at him, "Are you supposed to be my daughter's boyfriend?"

"I thought you were glad to see me," Adrien shrugged smiling nervously at him, but Tom squinted even harder, "I mean, yes sir, Ma—Marinette's my girlfriend,"

"Honey, put the kid down, let's have a little chat with them," Sabine told her husband patting gently on his arm, so he put Adrien down and motioned for them to head to the living room.

Marinette's living room was small and cozy, filled with items that meant something to the family. The first thing that Adrien noticed was that there were signs of common use of the space, such as wrinkled cushions and a small stain on the coffee table. Everything on Adrien's house was clean, without a blemish, especially the common areas, but that was only because nobody used them, at least not at the same time.

But the tension in the room had been growing larger every minute, especially because now Adrien was sitting on the floor cushion while the rest of the family sat on the couch, yet Tom's searching glances would never leave Adrien's side,

"So, Adrien," Tom's strong voice dragged Adrien out of his thoughts, "what are your intentions with our daughter,"

"Dad!" Marinette protested,

"It's alright Marinette," Adrien began to speak, "Monsieur Dupang, as you know my father is in jail right now, and nobody knows for sure what happened to my mother, so you see, my life is kind of a mess right now,"

"Adrien... what are you doing?" Marinette whispered, but Adrien ignored her and continued,

"I might not be the perfect guy for your precious daughter, but I love her... I love her madly. She's the sunshine of my life and I just couldn't be without her," Adrien's words made a silent tear roll down Marinette's cheek, "We're also a great team, and... and it feels like we're almost in sync sometimes, she's brave, smart, funny and beautiful, I understand why you care for her so much, she's far too precious to me, and even if there are a thousand things I still need to figure out. I promise to protect Marinette and be there for her whenever she needs me and..."

"Stop," Tom put a hand in the air to make Adrien stop talking, "You're making far too many promises that you don't know if you'll be able to keep,"

"But I'm..."

"You said it yourself, there are a thousand things you need to figure out, how can I trust you to keep your word if there are so many things you are not sure of yet,"

"Dad, I know Adrien, he..."

"Let me ask you something, kid," He interrupted Marinette again, "Do you really love her?"

"More than I love myself,"

"And you, Marinette, do you love this kid," Marinette looked at Adrien and smiled,

"Madly," she looked at her father and continued, "He's my best friend and the guy I love, how many people can say that?"

"That settles it then," Tom stood from his seat and towered before Adrien, "Welcome to the family, son" Tom opened his arms and hugged Adrien with all his might,

"Thank you," he said breathlessly, struggling to take in more breath, while Marinette and her mother laughed loudly at the scene.

"Although to be honest," Tom let go of Adrien and put him on the floor, "I was kinda getting used to the idea of my daughter dating Chat Noir, but I guess you'll do," Tom patted Adrien on the back and he laughed nervously,

"Tom!" "Dad!" Sabine and Marinette yelled at the same time, but Tom laughed loudly and patted Adrien even harder, making him blush even more.

"It's alright, with Hawk Moth gone..." Tom was about to say something else, but then Sabine elbowed him, reminding him that Adrien was going through a difficult time because of his father's criminal history.

"Adrien dear, did you eat your dinner?" Sabine asked him,

"No, but there's no need to..."

"Come, we were just about to have supper when Marinette brought you in, and we have enough for the four of us," She was already walking out of the room into the dining room, where there were several plates placed on a small table for four.

"I'm sorry about my dad," Marinette whispered to Adrien when Tom and Sabine went to the kitchen to get the meal, "He still clings to the idea of me dating 'Paris' own superhero,'" she added with air quotes,

"If only he knew that you're Paris' superheroine," he whispered back, making Marinette giggle,

"What are you two love birds whispering about?" Tom asked them entering the room with a metal bowl on his hands,

"Nothing sir, I was just telling Marinette that I'm not used to having dinner with my family," He smiled bitterly,

"Please, Adrien, call me Tom, and you're welcome to come to eat with us anytime."

The four of them enjoyed a hearty dinner and stuffed themselves until they couldn't eat anything else.

And when it was time for Adrien to leave, Sabine hugged him and patted his cheek,

"I don't like the thought of you sleeping alone in that huge house, Tom what do you say if we let him stay the night?" Sabine turned to her husband,

"I'm not so sure," He mumbled,

"He could sleep on the couch," Sabine said,

"If it's alright with you, that is," Marinette addressed Adrien with gleaning eyes,

"I would love to but, all of my stuff is in my house," Adrien smiled broadly,

"We can go get them, can't we Tom?" Sabine insisted

"Fine, but I'll keep an eye on you." He squinted at Adrien, to what he smiled scratching the back of his head,

o0o

One night became two nights, and two nights became a week. By the end of the month, Adrien was practically living with Marinette's parents. Adrien was, of course, having the time of his life, he enjoyed spending time with his new family, plus got to spend even more time with Marinette.

Their relationship wasn't a secret anymore and things were going great between them, yet they never announced it publicly, instead, everyone just figured it out when they saw them holding hands and leaving and arriving at school together. It was especially obvious when they were caught kissing under the shade of a tree.

It was particularly a surprise for Alya, who could swear that Marinette was over Adrien. She demanded an explanation, but Marinette just said that after what happened with Adrien's father, they became even closer than they had ever been.

When Alya told Nino, he acted as if he was surprised, but he had already seen them together at Master Fu's coffee shop, so the news were not much of a shock for him. However, it took him several tries to convince Alya of how sorry he was that he didn't tell her the news immediately. She did forgive him in the end, but only after he promised never to keep such a piece of juicy information from her.

o0o

Soon, the school year came to an end, and the date of their graduation arrived. Parents and teachers were enjoying the students' parade as they walked down the aisle to receive their titles. Every student that should have been there, was there, except for one, and every parent that should have been there, was there, except for two.

Marinette's family embraced Adrien and congratulated him on his graduation, but there was a prevailing sense of longing in his heart. His parents weren't there to celebrate with him. They weren't there to hug him and express how proud of him they were. Even if his father was an evil villain, he was still Adrien's father, and he regretted that he couldn't be there for one of the most special events of his life.

Adrien did his very best to hide the bitter feeling growing on his heart and enjoy the Party that Chloe's father prepared for all of her classmates. Adrien danced and ate to his heart content, but his head was somewhere else, wandering all over the place,

At some point during the party, Marinette went to talk to Alya and left Adrien talking to Nino. They were dancing and having fun, but when Marinette went back to find her boyfriend, she found that Nino was standing all by himself near the dessert table.

"Nino, where's Adrien?" She asked him over the loud music playing on the background,

"He said he wanted to take a breather and went to the balcony, he'll be back soon," Nino explained, speaking loudly to make his voice heard above the noise.

Marinette nodded but decided that she needed a breather from the stress of the party as well, and decided to join Adrien on the balcony,

She found him staring absently at the sky, drinking in the silence of the night,

"Beautiful night, isn't it, my prince?" Marinette said as she walked to where he was standing. He turned around to see her and smiled, a shallow smile.

"Not as beautiful as you, princess," He extended his hand to invite her forward, she took it and he kissed the back of her hand when she got close enough,

"I understand why you needed a breather, parties can get exhausting," She copied his stance resting her elbows on the railing, taking in the beauty of the city from such a high floor.

"I'm leaving," he said after a long moment of uncomfortable silence,

"You're going home? Let me go with you,"

"No, I mean... I'm leaving Paris," He let out a shaky breath,

"What? I thought we went over this," Marinette protested, "You can't just..."

"I know, I know what you're gonna say, but I can't deal with this anymore, and now that I don't have Plagg I feel like I'm trapped in here,"

"What about my parents? What about me?" Marinette turned to face him directly,

"They've been amazing, and you," he turned and grabbed her hands, "You've been the best girlfriend I could ever hope for, but..." He turned away and leaned on the railing again, "I can't become a nuisance for you guys, I've been living at your place for heaven's sake, I... I need to find my own place. I need to find out who I am,"

"Don't you know who you are? Do you need me to remind you? You're kind loyal, you're strong, you're dependable, you're Chat Noir for heaven's sake..."

"That's nice and all, but," He cut her off, "I'm on my own now. I can't take care of you, I'm... I'm just a boy, I need to find my place in the world. I want to earn a degree, and find a job I like and... and..."

"I thought you were you father's only heir, you don't need any of that, you have a whole fashion empire on your name,"

"Yeah, but what do I know about fashion other than modeling it? I can't run a business, I'm not even 18 yet!" He threw his hands in the air,

"Adrien, you're not alone, and I promised I would be by your side whatever decision you take, but I would really, really rather if you didn't have to go away,"

"I know, I wish I didn't," He turned to face her and hugged her tightly, she returned the hug and buried her face on his shirt, "but I've thought about this a lot, and I genuinely think it's for the best,"

"What about us?" She lifted her head to look him in the eyes, "Will we do long distance? you know that never works,"

"I'd come to visit you every opportunity I got, and I would call you every night and text you all day,"

Marinette wasn't convinced, but she limited herself to bury her face on Adrien's shirt again. She knew it was useless to argue, Adrien could be stubborn if he wanted to and he seemed to be set on his decision, plus, deep down inside she knew it was probably for the best, so she let herself enjoy the night with him, for who knew how many more they would have.

o0o

The dreaded day came sooner than they had expected. It was Adrien's time to leave.

Marinette's parents regretted that they wouldn't be there to take Adrien to the airport because they had an urgent order of cakes that they had to take care of. But they gave them a farewell cupcake and hugged him tightly before he left for the airport.

Nino and Alya had college interviews scheduled for that day, and they couldn't accompany him either, but it didn't matter, Adrien didn't want to make a fuss of his departure. Yet there was one person who was there with him, faithfully by his side. Marinette.

She didn't let go of his hand the whole ride to the airport, and it seemed that with every step closer to the gate, she squeezed his hand even harder. She didn't want to let go, but she knew that it was inevitable. She would have to let go at some point, suddenly she wished she could buy a ticket and leave with him,

"Mari, if you keep squeezing my hand like that it's gonna fall off," Adrien joked when they were right in front of the gate, but she didn't say anything, so Adrien turned to look at her in the eye, which were red and watery. "My love," he cupped her face with his hands, "I'll come back if you promise you will wait for me,"

"Adrien," She sighed, taking his hand from her cheek and holding it tight, "you know I will wait a lifetime for you because I can't help it, I love you madly," she shrugged still not daring to face him,

"My Lady," he said turning her face to see him with one finger on her chin, "I love you infinitely, and I promise I'll come back," He leaned in each time closer but stopped midway, then she leaned forward the rest of the way, getting rid of the space that separated them. They didn't even mind that they were in the middle of an airport because there was no other place they would rather be than each other's arms,

"Flight 1505 with destination to New York City, boarding on gate 21," A woman spoke from the speaker, interrupting their last kiss,

"This is it then," Marinette sighed,

"I'll see you soon," he grabbed her hand and kissed it, then he grabbed his luggage and headed to gate 21, leaving a flustered Marinette behind.

She had to understand him, the boy wanted to find his path, he was right to want that, but it didn't mean being away from him wouldn't hurt.

_**For you, I'll wait a lifetime,** _

_**Because yes... I love you madly.** _

_**I'll love you to infinity.** _

Now, while Adrien waited in the boarding area, Marinette stood outside as if she didn't know what to do next, but a sudden shake on the floor put her on guard.

The floor was trembling, in intervals, as if they were big steps.

She turned around to see if anyone else felt it, and she noticed that they were all looking at the tv, so she carefully made her way there,

"...There's a giant man causing chaos in the center of the city, we believe it could be yet another Akuma victim. It's been almost a month since Gabriel Agreste's arrest, but a man this huge is too big to be a natural phenomenon..."

Marinette's eyes widened as realization struck her, she never retrieved Hawk Moth's miraculous, nor Myura's,

"Marinette," she heard a familiar voice call her name and she turned around to see Adrien running back in her direction,

"Adrien, what are you doing here, you're gonna lose your flight," She reached to him holding his arms,

"I saw the news in the waiting room, another Akuma? How can that be? We gotta do something!"

"Something like what? We're powerless now," She whispered being mindful of the people around them,

"Well, then we gotta go find Master Fu, now!" He grabbed her hand and began to run with Marinette following close behind. But in their rush, they didn't notice that there was a cane on their way, which tripped Adrien's feet making him fall face-first on the floor, while Marinette tripped too and fell on top of Adrien,

"This, my children, is why you shouldn't be running in an airport," A small old man stood shaking his head at them,

"Master Fu!" Both of them screamed when they saw him smiling down at them,

"You're gonna need these," he handed them two familiar black boxes which they gladly took and stood up, "But before you go, there's something I need to talk to you about, Adrien, you go ahead, Marinette here will fill you up on the details later,"

"Okay, but how did you know there would be an Akuma," Adrien asked anticipating where he would hide to transform,

"Wayzz felt Nooroo's awakening, and I knew I would have to come to find you, now go, Paris needs you to be it's hero once again,"

Adrien nodded smiling broadly, and then rushed outside of the airport to transform,

"What is it that you wanted to talk to me about, Master?" Marinette asked, but he motioned for her to follow him behind a wall, out of the reach of prying ears,

"This is going to be our farewell Marinette," He smiled at her,

"Farwell? What do you mean?"

"I'm retiring,"

"retiring? Can you do that?"

"Of course I can! I'm 190 years old, I'd say I deserve it," He boasted

"But I mean, you're a guardian, do guardians retire? And if you do, who's gonna take care of the miraculous?"

"Why, my apprentice of course,"

"You have an apprentice? Phew, I gotta admit for a moment there I thought you would ask me to take care of them for you," Marinette laughed, but Master Fu's gaze was serious,

"Marinette, the life of a guardian is lonely and filled with secrets and deceit, you are meant for a different life,"

"But then, is your apprentice meant for such a life?"

"Guardians of miraculous are chosen from birth, and my apprentice has been learning from a very tender age. The time has come for me to retire and rest and for a new, younger guardian to take my place,"

"Alright, I can't wait to meet..."

"That's the thing Marinette, you will not meet my apprentice," Master Fu interrupted her, "If there's anything you need, you will text this phone number," he handed her a small paper with a phone number written in it, "the rest will be revealed in time,"

"Alright, I guess, but then couldn't I just talk to you?" she placed the small paper on her purse and closed it,

"I'm afraid this will be the last time we'll see each other," Seeing Marinette's alarmed expression, he cleared his throat and continued, "After I transfer the rights as guardian to my apprentice my memory will be erased, as is costume among guardians. Marianne will be there for me, and we will start a new life together. Do not be sad Marinette, this means my job is finally done," He patted her shoulder seeing how distraught she was,

"It's just... I'll miss you so much!" she threw herself in his arms and cried softly,

"There, there, Marinette, you cry as if it was the end of the world, but it's not, it's just the beginning," He patted her on the back until she calmed down, "Now, you'll need to be strong, I have the feeling that this new Hawk Moth, whoever he or she is, will be more powerful than the previous one,"

Marinette hugged Master Fu again and left to fight that giant. Master Fu was right however, this new Akuma was bigger and more powerful than other Akuma giants they had fought before, for once he was an adult and he was fast and strong. He proposed a true challenge for them, but they were able to defeat him in the end, breaking the akumatized object and releasing the Akuma, and that is how they discovered two things: Hawk Moth was back, but he was not Gabriel Agreste, because Gabriel Agreste was in custody and had not left his cell in the entire day. Someone else had the moth Miraculous, but who?

After defeating the giant, and after Ladybug explained Master Fu's situation to Chat Noir, both of them returned to the airport where Adrien's plane was still boarding since it was delayed due to the Akuma.

Having detransformed, Adrien ran to catch his flight, but he was stopped midway by a wall of police officers wit drawn weapons,

"You're not going anywhere kid," The chief police told Adrien while Marinette watched from a few feet behind, "Adrien Agreste, you're under arrest."

**To be continued...**

**[Keep posted, Aftershock is coming on April 2020]**


End file.
